Nana Fan Fiction ❯ » » 7 płus 7 equałs 3 ¤ ∙ ∙ ❯ The Plan ( Chapter 2 )

Disclaimer: Nana and its characters belong to Yazawa Ai.

 

—7♥8—

 

“You!” Shin angrily spat at the man, eyes blazing. Speak of the devil and the devil appears.

 

Takumi didn't recognize the silent rage and aggression in the boy's profile. It was nothing new to him; the boy looked the same as that night during Trapnest's staff party. Maybe he was still sore about that. God knows he was. The little brat threw his drink at him, the bastard. Looking past him, he spotted Nana and… “Yasu! I didn't expect to see you here!”

 

“I could say the same thing about you…” Yasu muttered.

 

Hachi was frozen in her seat. She quickly averted her eyes when his gaze swept towards her vicinity, unwilling to look at him. Why was he here? What was he doing here? Did he think that he could get into bed with her after not contacting her for so long again? Her spirits sunk. So he really did see her as just an opportunity girl to him after all… maybe none of his other regular girls were available, that's why he came here…

 

“Long time no see,” he walked past Shin, brushing him off as if he were nothing more than a fly on the wall.

 

… Or maybe he was just looking for Yasu.

 

Shin slammed the door shut forcefully and rushed to beat Takumi to the table by the window. He sat beside Hachi, looking like an angry sentry. “Why are you here?”

 

“I was in the neighborhood and decided to pay a visit.” Yasu scooted over closer to the window, facing Hachi, to make room for Takumi. Trapnest's bassist kept stealing looks at his girl, wondering why she hasn't spared him a glance since his arrival. Wasn't she glad to see him?

 

“Oh really?” Shin pasted on a fake smile, “Then visit's over. Thank you for coming, don't let the door hit you on your way out.”

 

You could almost see Takumi's thought bubble with squiggly lines to indicate his displeasure from Shin's non-existent hospitality.

 

“Shin,” Yasu was a little concerned with the animosity that the teenager was showing “why don't you help Nana-chan make some tea?” He turned to Takumi, “Or would you like some beer?”

 

“There's no beer in the fridge,” Shin wasn't really sure about that but he said it anyway.

 

“Tea is fine.”

 

Shin glared at Takumi for a few seconds more before he dragged his feet to the kitchen to help Hachi. She looked a little unsettled, so he gently grasped her arm to help her up her feet and placed a gentle hand behind her back in case she collapsed or something.

 

Hachi's legs were shaking, and she was grateful for Shin's hand on her back. It wasn't enough to shield her from Takumi's gaze, if he was looking at her, which she doubted he'd do since she wasn't worthy of such attention from him, but it gave her legs enough strength for now.

 

Takumi's eyes narrowed a fraction at Shin's gesture. The boy was getting too familiar with his girlfriend. He didn't like it. Yasu didn't notice; he was thinking of how to get rid of Takumi as soon as possible.

 

“Don't you have some recordings to do, Takumi?”

 

Trapnest's bassist pulled out his cigarettes and lighter from his pocket. “We have a three-day break,” he lit the lighter but was stopped from lighting his cigarette by Blast's drummer.

 

“Uh…” Yasu silently cursed himself. When he saw the cigarette, he just acted out of instinct. “Nana doesn't want people smoking inside the apartment anymore.”

 

Takumi raised a brow. “What for?”

 

“She's trying to improve her singing voice.”

 

“But she's not here right now, is she? What she doesn't know won't hurt her,” he raised the lighter again.

 

Yasu yanked the lighter out of Takumi's grasp. “But when she comes home, she'll be able to tell that someone's been smoking in here and Nana-chan doesn't smoke, so she'll think it was us.” Hopefully, Takumi didn't know that Nana was staying with Ren right now.

 

“So?”

 

“So?” Shin asked from where he stood near Hachi in the counter. “So that means that we are the ones who are going to have to take responsibility for your actions. Before you do something, you should think about the consequences first!” The double meaning in his words was lost on Takumi.

 

Takumi sighed, placing his paraphernalia back in his pocket. “I've never known of any band that catered to their lead singer's whims so much. Are you scared of her that much? Or is it love? You value your lead vocalist enough to sacrifice smoking in her apartment even when she's not around?”

 

“Oh?” Shin crossed his arms together. “What about you? Don't you cater to your Reira and her whims, too? After all, she is your princess, isn't she?” He knew a lot about the history of Trapnest together and was suspicious of Takumi. While it was obvious and known where Reira's feelings lay, Takumi's true feelings were unknown to him. He could only speculate but now, more than ever, he had to know the truth in order to protect something important. “Your precious princess that you have to protect from everyone,” he sneered. “You love her too, don't you?”

 

Hachi almost dropped the kettle from Shin's brazen questions. Was what he was saying true? Takumi was in love with Reira? She didn't have the strength to turn around, so she waited with bated breath for his answer. If he was in love with Reira, then she had no chance -- never stood a chance. She should give up now, like she gave up on making Yasu her boyfriend. She knew she could never compete with the likes of Reira.

 

Takumi's brows furrowed to the point of irritation. What was this kid talking about? Did he want to stir up trouble? He could tell from Nana's rigid posture that the conversation was upsetting her and he didn't like that. She might start believing Shin's untrue presumptions. “How did the conversation turn from my smoking to Reira?”

 

He looked to Yasu for answer but found none. “Not that I'm obliged to answer you, boy, but my love for Reira is that of a brother to a sister. You can ask Yasu if you don't believe me. Not that I care what you believe in anyway,” he silently sent Nana mental suggestions to turn around and look at him, but she remained facing the other way. Her shunning of him was adding fuel to his irritation. It also proved that he had little to no psychic abilities.

 

“Sure,” Shin waved off Takumi's reply as a lie, “that's what guys always say. I do that too. You should be more honest about your feelings. It only gets people hurt when you lie. All of us already know that the one Reira truly loves is you. Surely you have to reciprocate your princess' feelings of love. She's your princess, after all.”

 

“You keep saying she's MY princess like she's mine and nobody else's. She is our princess; she's the band's princess. Without her, the band, as a vehicle, wouldn't be able to work because she's the engine. I don't think that's any of your business,” he didn't bother to hide the sharpness of his tone “but to satisfy your curiosity, no, I am not in love with Reira. What she does or how she feels concerning her love life is no concern to me as long as she doesn't jeopardize the band.”

 

“I wonder how much of what you're saying is actually true and how much of it you believe or just convinced yourself is true.”

 

“What the hell -“

 

“Tea's ready,” Hachi ignored Takumi's outburst. Shin brought the cup over to Takumi and dropped it in front of him carelessly, spilling some of the liquid unto the platter, almost hitting Takumi in the process.

 

“What the fu—“

 

“Shin, why don't you help Nana-chan with that thing inside her bedroom?” Yasu was doubtful a confrontation between the two could be avoided if they stayed in the same room together any longer. “Why don't you go along and help her with it for a little bit?”

 

Shin's brows wrinkled. “What're you—“

 

Hachi guessed what Yasu was up to. “Ah yes, Shin-chan, you promised to help me, didn't you? It'll only be a second, I promise not to take any more of your time.” With some prodding, she managed to push him into her room.

 

As he watched his girlfriend go inside her bedroom with the boy, he decided that he hated that kid now more than ever. “Why is Nana hanging out with that kid? What are they going to do in her bedroom?” Perhaps there was a bit more bite to his voice when he pronounced the last word, but he couldn't help it.

 

“Nana-chan is asking Shin change the light-bulb in her room,” was all Yasu could think of for the moment. “Even more important, don't you have some place to go, work to do or woman to be with right now, Takumi? What are you doing here?”

 

Takumi flicked his hair over his shoulder. The gesture was of feminine nature but it looked totally masculine on him. “I was going to ask you the same question.”

 

—7♥8—

 

“We should go back outside and tell him!” Shin whispered furiously, pacing a path inside Hachi's room. “Then we can push him down the stairs and hope he breaks his neck in the descent,” an evil grin moved the chain connecting his earring to his lip piercing.

 

“No killing, Shin-chan! Don't fall into the trap of the Demon King!”

 

Shin sighed, getting back to reality. “We should stay here and wait until he leaves. I'm sure Yas-san will get rid of him in a minute or two.” He blanched, noticing the poster on her wall. “You still have that up?”

 

Hachi had the sense to look embarrassed. “I still like Trapnest,” she said defensively.

 

“I guess… Reira and Ren are cool. Naoki seems cool too even if I don't know him that well… I met him after their tour and that was it but I didn't get a bad vibe from him.” Shin relented, then grinned, picked up a post-it pad on Hachi's desk and slapped several post-its on the poster. He was satisfied when he finished covering Takumi's picture.

 

Hachi laughed, she couldn't help it. The Trapnest poster on her wall now only had Naoki, Ren and Reira visible. Naoki stood beside Ren, then Reira who had her hand to his chest. Beside Reira was nothing but a bunch of post-it notes.

 

Shin grinned some more, happy with his work. “Now I like it!” He gave her a thumbs-up. “I'm such a genius!”

 

Hachi sat on her bed, running her hand on her soft comforter, thoughtful. “I wonder why he's here?” She gasped. “Do you think he came here to see me? Maybe he wants to make up with me?”

 

Shin gave his surrogate mom a sardonic look, “Do you honestly believe that he came here for that?”

 

Whatever burgeoning hope bloomed in her heart was crushed in an instant. She forced a laugh, “Me and my delusions.”

 

“That's what makes mama so cute!” He turned the TV on and took off his shoes before he made himself comfortable on the bed. “Mama's bed is so soft,” he sighed as he burrowed a Shin-shaped hole into it. “I think I could get used to this.”

 

Hachi settled herself under the covers. “Be careful or else you'll turn into a big mama's boy,” she joked as she watched television with him until her eyes became droopy.

 

Shin yawned and placed his hands behind his head. He felt so relaxed. The bed from Mizukoshi-san's store was really comfortable.

 

—7♥8—

 

Yasu's phone rang before he could answer Takumi's question. He was surprised to find out who it was.

 

“Yasu!!! Did you forget that we were supposed to meet tonight?!”

 

Yasu winced, he did forget. “I'm so sorry! I went to go a friend's place and forgot about the time. Then Takumi came and—“

 

“Takumi's there with you??! Where are you? Can I come?! Can I!? Can I?!”

 

Yasu told him the address.

 

“Hey, I'm really near there! I just need to take a right on the next street and I'll be there in five minutes.”

 

“Great,” Yasu replied, “We're on Apartment 707.” He hung up and faced a curious Takumi.

 

“Busy night?”

 

“Guess so.”

 

Trapnest's bassist kept giving the door to Hachi's room cursory looks that became more heated each time. Yasu felt more and more uncomfortable each minute and he pretended to be totally occupied with sipping his tea that had long cooled down. When he finished his cup, he poured some more and sat there as if nothing was wrong with the picture.

 

He attempted to talk casually with Takumi and tried to ignore the heated looks Trapnest's bassist kept throwing at Hachi's bedroom door.

 

“So how about the weather we're having huh?”

 

Takumi shrugged. “Nasty storm we had last time,” he mumbled off-handedly, still keeping an eye on the door. How long does it take to change a light bulb?

 

“I remember that, it was during the fireworks festival too. We couldn't light up our firecrackers because they got wet that time.”

 

Takumi didn't acknowledge that he heard what Yasu was talking about. The more Takumi looked towards Hachi's room, the more Yasu felt uncomfortable. He'd never been so glad when the doorbell rang.

 

Ding Dong

 

Yasu rushed towards the door and opened it in relief.

 

“Yasu! I brought some beer, snacks and a pair of cards. Oh hey Takumi!” He handed Yasu the beer and brought the snack over to the table by the window.

 

Takumi's face soured. “Naoki, what on earth are you doing here?”

 

“I was supposed to meet Yasu at his apartment but he never showed. He said I could come over so here I am. You hang out with Yasu on your free time too, Takumi?” Trapnest's good-looking blond drummer was all smiles and hearts. His night was getting better and better. Hanging out with Yasu and Takumi was the best thing ever!

 

His eyes surveyed the apartment curiously. “Whose apartment is this? It looks really quaint and pretty on the outside but there's no elevator, man! Going up the stairs was quite a workout.” He looked around appreciatively. “It's so… cute,” he looked a little thoughtful, “and girly.”

 

Yasu gave them each a beer and placed the remaining ones inside the fridge. Takumi noted that there were a lot of beer stocked in the fridge and that the brat had lied to him about it earlier. He chalked one more up on the offenses the adolescent had done to him, quietly promising himself he'd make the brat pay.

 

“Does your girlfriend live here or something, Yasu?”

 

Blast's drummer shook his head. “No, but Ren's does and she has a roommate.” He indicated which room was Ren's girlfriend's room and which Ren's girlfriend's roommate's room was.

 

“Speaking of which,” Takumi bit out, “what are they doing in there?” His smile was forced, his teeth gritted. Surely it didn't take this long to change one bloody light-bulb.

 

“I'll go… check,” Yasu intended to go alone, but the two guys from Trapnest followed him. Takumi was dying of curiosity and something else while Naoki just followed Takumi's lead. He sighed before he knocked softly on the door. What were those two doing?

 

“There are others here? Is this like a party and I wasn't invited?” Naoki questioned as Yasu opened the door to Hachi's room. He was always left out of the loop. In highschool and even until now, he felt like everyone didn't really hang out with him unless it was business-related.

 

Upon entering Hachi's room, the three men were greeted with a news report on TV and the occupants sound asleep on the bed. Both were still fully clothed, Hachi was under the covers and Shin was on top. The boy had his mouth slightly open and was snoring quietly. They had fallen asleep waiting for Yasu to make Takumi go away and had fallen to the lure of Mizukoshi-san's soft bed.

 

Yasu's eyes softened behind his shades upon seeing his two charges look so relaxed.

 

Naoki admired the cute furniture in the room until his sight landed on a poster of his band on the wall. “Do I really look like that?” He admired himself. He looked so shiny and handsome in the poster… and “Why is Takumi covered in post-its?”

 

All Takumi saw was Shin sleeping on his girlfriend's bed and red; lots and lots of angry red. Before he knew it, his temper clashed with the red and he acted out, grabbed Shin by the lapels of his shirt and threw him on the floor. No other male was allowed to sleep on Nana's bed except for him. No one.

 

Being dumped on the floor proved to be a wake-up call for Shin. His eyes opened in surprise to find an enraged Takumi held by Yasu standing over him from where he was sprawled on the floor. “Yas-san? What's going on?” How did he go from his mama's soft bed to the cold floor? Did mama kick him? Nobu did it a lot.

 

Takumi growled at him.

 

Hachi's slumber was disturbed by the forceful removal of Shin that shook the bed. She woke up slowly and the first thing that she saw made her think she was in another one of her celebrity-related dreams. “Naoki?” In her room? She gaped openly at the good-looking blond. Was it really him? The Naoki look-alike was gaping at something to her left, and her eyes widened at the sight.

 

“Let me go, Yasu!” Takumi snapped angrily. He wanted to beat the piss out of the snotty little cocky brat.

 

“Takumi get a hold of yourself!” Yasu reasoned with him.

 

“Takumi what's wrong with you?” Naoki finally found his voice.

 

“Is this a dream?”

 

Naoki smiled at the cutie, shaking his head. “I'm afraid it's not, my lady.” His charming mode wasn't in full hundred percent, but his sparkly smile was enough to make Hachi a little dizzy.

 

Naoki was in her room. Sure, she was going to wake up any minute now, like she did with her Ren dream, but still… Naoki was so handsome in her dreams!

 

“She's not yours and don't call her that, Naoki.”

 

Naoki's brow rose. “Possessive, aren't we, Takumi?”

 

“Shut up.” He struggled, “Let me go, Yasu.”

 

“Not until you promise not to kill my bassist, Takumi.” Yasu barely avoided an elbow-fist combination.

 

Hachi gasped, finally realizing that this wasn't a dream. Yasu had his arms restrained against Takumi's shoulders for some reason, Shin was getting up from where he fell from on the floor, and “Naoki of Trapnest is really in my bedroom!?!?!”

 

Yasu sweatdropped. “I think there's a more pressing situation right now, don't you think so, Nana-chan?”

 

Hachi looked confused. “Why is… is Takumi mad?”

 

“They weren't doing anything, Takumi.” Yasu said. “They were just sleeping. Shin does that a lot, this is normal for them to do. Don't place too much meaning into it or see it for more than it really is. You're overreacting.”

 

“Just one punch, Yasu.”

 

Shin snorted, grasping the situation. He was awakened from his soft slumber when he got acquainted with the cold floor. He found out who the jerk that did it was when he opened his eyes. “What's your problem, asshole?”

 

Takumi's right arm got loose from Yasu's grasp and planted a knuckle sandwich at the surprised Shin. The boy wasn't able to step back in time to avoid the hit. It connected sharply with his jaw and the force snapped his head back, causing him to stumble. He held on to the edge of the bed to keep his head from colliding with the wall.

 

“Shin-chan! Takumi what are you doing? STOP IT! Shin-chan, are you okay?” Hachi helped Shin stagger back to his feet and held him back when he went for Takumi.

 

Naoki stepped in between them and held his arms apart to keep the males away from each other. “I don't really understand what's going on here but stop it!” He respected Takumi, he was his leader; but on the other hand, he held no grudge against Shin and didn't wish to have his leader involved in a fist fight. It was bad for their band's image.

 

“Keep your hands off of my girlfriend, punk.”

 

“Girlfriend?” Shin's question was echoed by Hachi and Naoki. “You have no right to call her that. You haven't called her in who knows how many weeks, and you don't treat her right. You're only using her. Don't call her your girlfriend, you're not a good enough man for her!” He spat.

 

“When did I become your girlfriend?” Hachi was confused. As far as she knew, they were just convenient fuck buddies.

 

“Takumi has a girlfriend?” Naoki scrutinized the girl. She was cute, too cute. She looked so innocent and sweet. She wasn't the type of girl he'd peg to be Takumi's girlfriend.

 

“You didn't ask me to be your girlfriend and you haven't even called me in weeks… and why are you picking on Shin-chan?!!” Her grip on Shin loosened, her stomach felt woozy. “I'm just a convenient…” her sentence trailed off. Startled, Naoki was pushed aside when she made a mad dash for the toilet.

 

The retching sounds were unmistakable, dousing Takumi's anger. He paled at the sound, it was as if she was puking her guts out. “Wha— what's wrong with her?” Ren mentioned she'd been sick…

 

“The sight of you makes her sick, so get the hell out of here.”

 

“Shin!”

 

Shin didn't meet Yasu's eyes when he strode passed them and went to the toilet. Yasu led Takumi and Naoki back to the table, the former as meek as a lamb and both were pale at the sound of the girl's retching.

 

“Nana-chan isn't feeling well. Would you like to continue this somewhere else? I'm sure Shin will make sure she… Takumi, where are you going?”

 

He didn't stop until he entered the bathroom. There he found Shin helping Hachi stand up after she threw up to her stomach's content. “Have you been to the doctor?”

 

—7♥8—

 

“Get your free sample of Mocha Cola! A new drink that is sure to tease your taste buds!” Several really cute girls shouted in the bustling basement of a big, known Tokyo store. All were dressed with the same cute uniform: the body-hugging shirt had the product's name on the front and a short skirt. They are called Demonstrators and their job is to inform people of new products and encourage them to test it out.

 

Off to one side, in a shaded bench, a teenager with a lot of piercings snoozed quietly. Back at the Demonstrator stall, crowds came and went, trying out or ignoring the products that the cute girls were giving them for free.

 

When their manager allowed some of them to get a break while the others continued, one of the cute Demonstrators trotted up to the teenager snoozing out in public with a sample in hand.

 

“Get your free sample of Mocha Cola,” she whispered directly into his ear, poking him awake in the process.

 

He jolted awake from his dream of performing in a live concert in the Tokyo Dome. “Cola what now?”

 

“Here, just try it.” The sample cup thrust into his hand and he obediently took a sip from it.

 

His brows shot up in surprise. “Not bad,” he nodded. “Is it break time? Your manager isn't going to get mad at you for slacking off again, is he? Or did you quit like I told you to this time?”

 

“I'm on my break and I'm not quitting as long as I can still go to work. When my stomach gets rounder, I won't be able to work as a Demonstrator anymore and I have nothing else to fall back on. Nobody wants to hire a pregnant woman who's going to go on a maternity leave soon after she gets hired, so I'm saving up right now.”

 

“I told you not to worry about that,” he emptied the contents and crumpled the sample cup in his hands, tossing it in the nearby trash can. “I'm not going to let my little sister starve,” he grumbled.

 

“What about me?”

 

He scrutinized her in the corner of his eyes, “I dunno… you're pretty hard-headed and you don't listen to me even if I'm right… but I guess I'd have to take care of you too. Or just until my little sister's out and -“ A hand rapped him at the side of the head. “Ow! I was kidding! I'm kidding!” He cowered away from his mom as he rubbed his abused head.
“Stop taking child abuse lessons from Nana,” he grumbled quietly.

 

This was the beginning of the Shin cycle.

 

For as long as she could still pass off as a slim-figured young woman in her twenties, Hachi decided she was going to continue demonstrating products to save as much money as she could. It really changed one's perspective if you were responsible of someone else's life, especially if that life was growing inside of you.

 

Whenever she went out to demonstrate, Shin would be found several meters away. It didn't matter if he had a client the night before or not, whenever his mom went out to demonstrate, he was always there.

 

“Why are you doing this, Shin?” He remembered Nobu asking him that question several weeks ago.

 

“I'm doing it because Hachi is ours and I don't want to have Takumi take her away from us, Nobu-san.”

 

It was the honest to goodness truth. If Nobu didn't have the balls to keep Takumi away from taking Hachi, no one else was going to do it. Except Nana, of course, but Nana was a girl and his newly found family needed a strong man to protect them.

 

Breaking the news to Nana was easier than they anticipated. Hachi saying “Nana I'm pregnant” didn't send her into a fit of rage, burst into tears or hysteria -- only a few scenarios which Yasu steeled himself for.

 

Hachi, Shin and Yasu organized `the event' under a mahjong drinking session at Apartment 707. Hachi, of course, wasn't allowed to drink alcohol. Yasu had the foresight to get her some grapefruit juice (a lot of it) to calm her queasy stomach, and stocked up on the saltine crackers. She prepared the food wearing a throw-up protector all the while. Neither Nobu nor Nana were suspicious about it, since it made sense to them for her to wear a face mask if she still suffered from her summer cold.

 

They eased into the telling of the big news. Hachi fed them good food first and Yasu plied them with alcohol. Shin was the one who reminded Nobu of the no smoking policy, telling him that smoking wasn't good for Nana's singing voice. Secretly, he didn't want anyone to smoke because it would be unhealthy for the baby, but he refrained from saying it.

 

Great food, fun company, a good game of mahjong and a light buzz from the alcohol slowed Nobu's brain process. Hachi's rejection of him, however gentle, after he sensed that their relationship was finally going to progress more than friendship, had hurt. Just seeing her made his chest hurt; it was like someone was squeezing his heart.

 

Nana turned into stone. Her voice, jaw and brain refused to cooperate with each other to form a reply to the surprising news. They all stood on pins and needles until their friend snapped back to reality and declared that she would be there for Hachi no matter what.

 

Or rather, “If you decide to tell Takumi, I won't stop you, even if I would prefer it if you didn't. I will always be your friend even if you want to be together with that player, but I can't guarantee that he will be faithful to you or if he has enough humanity in him to make you happy.”

 

Hachi, Nobu and Yasu weren't sure how to reply to that, but Shin was full of confidence when he replied, “I'm glad we're on the same page on this one, Nana! Now, here's what I think we should do…”

 

That night, Hachi, Nobu and Yasu learned that you should be very afraid if Nana and Shin ever teamed up against you. They always knew in the back of their heads that Nana was a dangerous woman to be enemies with and that their little `Shin-chan' was probably as unstable or probably more unstable than Nana was, but that night proved to them just how lucky they were to be on the positive end of both people's characters.

 

Hachi couldn't bring herself to break the two of her most precious person's hearts; Yasu was looking out for his friends' sanity; and Nobu was just plain scared to see the Nana-Shin combo first hand.

 

Takumi didn't stand a chance.

 

—7♥8—

 

Takumi was nursing a rather large and pounding headache.

 

Three weeks have passed since he almost beat the living crap out of the brat known as Shin, but he was still at a loss as to what the boy's relationship with his girlfriend was… or if Nana was still his girlfriend or not. In his mind, she still belonged to him, even if they haven't talked to each other for three weeks now. She needed time to cool off from whatever she was suffering from, and he had given her three weeks to calm herself.

 

It was difficult to maintain a relationship with someone who refused to take your calls though, and he wondered many times why he was doing this. What was it about her that drew him in and made him want more? Why did she occupy his mind whenever he wasn't busy?

 

He almost hated not being buried in piles of work. He almost hated having off days. He could only spend them working some more half of the time, and the other half was spent sleeping.

 

That was what he was supposed to be doing right now. Sleeping. But he wasn't. How could anyone expect him to sleep soundly when his mind was occupied with thoughts of Nana? Smiling Nana, laughing Nana, worried Nana, pouting Nana, Nana under him, Nana on top of him, Nana sleeping on her soft bed… with that brat Shin. Argh! Damn it! It wasn't working. Sleep was elusive for the troubled mind.

 

Sigh.

 

Is this what they call a broken heart? Is that it? No one he… cared about… dumped him before so this was all new to him. Or rather, was it Shin who dumped him?

 

“Hachi can't continue seeing you anymore, Takumi-san.” The honorific sounded like an insult to his ears and the boy's posture was full of tension. He looked like he was ready to pounce on Takumi if he made the wrong move or said the wrong thing.

 

“Are you her spokesperson now?” His voice dripped with sarcasm.

 

“As you can clearly see, she is not feeling well. We would appreciate it if you don't return here anymore and stay as far away as possible from her from now on.”

 

Naoki's stomach quivered in fear from Takumi's grin. “Kid you got some nerve to talk to me like that.”

 

Shin stood guard over Hachi like a sentry as she washed her mouth in the sink. Yasu was by her side the instant she finished, a towel in hand. “Shin is right, Takumi.” She finished wiping her face. “It's best if we don't see each other anymore.”

 

-- was what happened.

 

He protested but he was outnumbered three to one and Naoki even helped them haul his ass away from the apartment. To save face, he pretended like he didn't really care about her and even managed to spit out a “Fine! Be that way. It was fun while it lasted anyway, see you around” before he jerked away from Naoki's grasp and stomped away with whatever was left with his pride.

 

`It's her loss!' was what he repeated to himself over and over again.

 

He didn't care.

 

There were lots of other women out there who would kill themselves or sell their mothers just to be with him. He was just temporarily insane to have considered anything more than a passing fling with her anyway. Yes, he had to convince himself that that was the truth.

 

—7♥8—

 

Takumi? Takumi who?

 

The father of Hachi's child was not Takumi and that's the end of the story. When the time comes when the child starts to question his or her parentage, they could just tell him or her that she was her father. There wasn't a law that states only males could be fathers now, could there?

 

And she was way better than Takumi anyway. Or if they really needed a male to be the `father', Yasu, Shin or maybe even Nobu could do it. The child will not lack for any `fathers' in her life, that was for sure. Ren could also be one of her fathers. Ren wanted children. Nana was willing to share Hachi's child with him. He just needed to understand that he was never to tell Takumi about the child. Ever. As long as he understood and his loyalty was with them and not Takumi, then he could be a father too.

 

Yes, everything was going to work out.

 

Money was not going to be a problem because they were going to go pro soon. She will make enough money to support her, Hachi and the baby three times over. Hachi didn't need Takumi. Hachi needed only her and no one else.

 

She wasn't a greedy person. Normally.

 

She knew how to share. She could share even those most precious to her. She shared Hachi with her band mates all the time. She could even share Hachi with Ren if he wished to.

 

But Takumi was not a band mate. Nor was he any Ren. Takumi was the enemy. She didn't share with enemies.

 

Hachi didn't need Takumi in her life. She was the only one whom Hachi truly needed.

 

“Takumi is very cunning. He is the kind of guy who will not hesitate to use all means possible to get rid of his competition and anyone who will get in his way. He will do everything and anything to get what he wants and still manage to look good in the end. He is not someone who is to be trifled with.” Yasu's words still echoed in Nana's mind.

 

If Takumi was as invincible as Yasu painted him to be, then she was just the person to take him down. No one was going to take Hachi away. No one. Not even all-powerful, super perfect Takumi was a match for her.

 

“Nana, your grin is scaring me. What are you thinking about?” Ren shivered lightly from the maniacal look on his girlfriend's face. They were currently watching the credits roll from the recorded movie of Hachikou the dog. It was raining outside, adding to his melancholy about the beautiful story. He was just about to discuss it with his beloved when he noticed her expression.

 

“Hm? Nothing.” She looked out the window. “What the— it's dark outside already? And it's raining?! Oh no! I have to go home! Hachi's home alone tonight because Shin has to work late.” She scrambled to find her clothes and hastily put them back on.

 

“You're not staying over?” The displeasure he felt was apparent on his face. “You could stay here if you want,” he offered. Lately, Nana has been spending less time with him.

 

“Sorry, I can't Ren. Shin can't be home until later and I don't want to leave Hachi alone.” She apologized and put her socks back on.

 

“Hachi is a big girl. She doesn't need a babysitter.” He felt like he was missing something. “You know, I thought that you would be able to spend more time sleeping over here since Shin moved in with you guys, but you've been spending less time with me instead. And furthermore, I noticed that you only allow yourself to sleep over when Shin is home.” He didn't feel suspicious about Nana cheating on him or anything like that, but something was definitely up. “Are you hiding something from me?”

 

Nana's spine stiffened and her inner voice kicked in. Ren can't know about Hachi's condition until I make sure that we have his full, two thousand and fifty percent loyalty. He must be loyal to us and us only. He cannot be allowed to breathe any of it to that Takumi.

 

Ren's eyes narrowed at Nana's forced laugh. “No, nothing is wrong. It's nothing, haha!” She thought she was doing a good job. Ren wasn't buying it, but he wasn't going to push her into telling him what it was either.

 

“It's raining! Ugh. Ren! Give me a ride back home!” Her coat and shoes came on in a matter of seconds.

 

“You're not staying over?” Ren pouted, clearly upset.

 

“Um…” Crap, she couldn't tell Ren. Not yet. “I need to go home tonight. Shin's not going to be home and Hachi is sick. Someone has to be there to watch over her and make sure she's alright.”

 

Ren sighed. He had no way to win if the opponent was Hachi. “Okay, okay.”

 

—7♥8—

 

Shin could still remember his most important mission that came straight from Nana.

 

“Listen Shin, I agree with everything that you just said but there is one thing that I wanted to talk to you about.”

 

After the Super Secret Conference they just held, everyone was in agreement on the things and rules that Shin and Nana laid down. The promises they got from Yasu, Nobu and Hachi were as good as binding contracts signed with their own bloods. Nobu still looked hurt when they told him to go home, so Nana ordered Yasu to take him home. Yasu pointed out how it would be more fruitful if Shin was the one who took Nobu home, but Nana glared at him and told him she was going to have Shin run an errand for her at the convenience store.

 

She waited until she saw the dark silhouettes of Yasu and Nobu walking up the stairs towards the street beside the riverbank before she dropped her voice just above a whisper.

 

“We must prevent Takumi from knowing about Hachi's pregnancy as long as we can,” she told him gravely in a dead serious voice. “You heard what Yasu said.”

 

Shin nodded solemnly. Yes, he heard.

 

“Until such time that we can debut as professionals and have all the money we want to support Hachi, we must keep her away from that man. If we're not careful, that man could come and take Hachi away from us forever.”

 

Yes, he heard. He also understood completely. And he'd be damned if he was just going to roll over and play dead while Takumi took his mother away from him.

 

The plan looked like it was going smoothly. The only missing part of the puzzle was for them to go pro. Once they went pro, they wouldn't have to worry about money so much. Their expenses would be covered, the baby's expenses would be seen to, and their futures would be secure.

 

He didn't want millions or billions of yen. He just wanted enough to support his family. Once they went pro, he wouldn't have to worry about Takumi taking his mama away anymore.

 

He no longer met up with various women. It was mostly thanks to Reira. When they first met, he didn't really expect her to pay him the one hundred thousand yen up front and told her so the next time they met, but she'd been insistent on giving him the amount each time.

 

Maybe it was her way of keeping him for herself exclusively, maybe not. It kept him `exclusive' either way. Somewhat anyway. He could never deny Ryouko if she called. Correction, make that almost never.

 

There was one night when Ryouko was in the country for a spell and called him but he had to decline because Hachi was still having violent nausea. He didn't really think anything about his denial of the attractive flight attendant until two days later when his mama's nausea became somewhat bearable and she didn't look like she was going to keel over and die anymore.

 

His worry was so intense that by the time he called Ryouko to make it up to her, she was off for another flight later that day. She wasn't mad at him; things between them were never really clear, but even though they didn't make any commitments or promises between them, they always remained good to each other.

 

She probably thought he had a steady girlfriend and he frankly didn't really need to explain the situation to her; the less people who knew about what exactly was happening, the better - even if those people didn't know the persons involved. Ryouko was a strong, independent girl. She didn't need Shin to hold her hair for her while he rubbed her back as she vomited into the toilet.

 

He had to admit that he was relieved when his mama's violent retching phase passed. It was like a huge weight had been lifted from his stomach, literally. His appetite returned after not hearing his mom vomit five to infinite times a day anymore.

 

Yasu called it sympathy nausea.

 

He didn't know what that meant but he was glad it was over. He wouldn't have been so happy if he knew what was in store for him next though. Hachi had cravings next, and boy was he in for a rough ride.

 

—7♥8—

 

Kurata was not having a good day.

 

He'd been literally stalking Ren at his place for several days in a row now to no luck. `Just one picture!' his boss said. Just one picture and he could go get himself some hot coffee, a warm shower and dry clothes. Right now, he was sitting with his back against the wall hidden behind some shrubbery and soaked to the bone. No, this was definitely not a good day.

 

What was the deal with his boss' fixation with Blast anyway? Why was he so obsessed on getting the dirtiest dirt about its members? Did he want to boost their career or trample on them? He didn't get it. Their magazine didn't focus mainly on one band. Sure Trapnest was the most popular band in Japan right now and if one of the members got involved in a scandal or rumor, it would be big, but the boss was so concerned about Ren because of his connection to Nana. If his job wasn't on the line, he would say his boss had an unhealthy interest in Blast. How else would you explain sending your reporter to stake out Ren's apartment, come rain or shine, no matter what, until…

 

Holy shit!

 

He scrambled quickly to take quick successive shots of the couple huddled close together as they exited the building and got into the car.

 

Bingo!

 

Ren and Nana were sharing Ren's jacket as they braved the rain and they had huge smiles on their faces. Smiles that would be plastered all over tomorrow's magazine and headlines.

 

Finally!

 

His hard work finally paid off and he could finally he could go home and get that hot steaming cup of coffee.

 

—7♥8—

Ding Dong

 

“Shin-chan, wake up!!!” Nudge.

 

Ding Dong

 

“Mmmm… five more minutes, mom.” Eyes still closed and more than half-asleep, he burrowed further into the covers.

 

A hand shook him harder this time. “Wake up, Shin-chan! Wake up right now!”

 

Ding Dong

 

“Go get it, Shin!” Stronger nudge.

 

“Mama, I just bought you bottled pickles and a tub of ice cream yesterday,” his whine was almost inaudible. “And I didn't even forget the syrup.”

 

Ding Dong

 

“Shin-chan?”

 

No response. He was out like a light, exhausted from the erratic sleeping patterns and bizarre times he had to run errands for his pregnant mom who was having weird cravings at odd hours of the night or early morning.

 

Really, really early morning.

 

Ding Dong

 

Hachi groaned.

 

“I'll be right there!” She called out to whoever was ringing the doorbell, frustrated that her precious sleep was being disturbed so early in the morning.

 

Ding Dong

 

Ding Dong

 

“Agh! Who could it be at this time of day? It's too early for visitors.” No amount of shaking was enough to force Shin out of his comfortable position, it seemed. She sighed in defeat. She grabbed her matching robe and put it on. Despite throwing up a lot, she gained her weight back thanks to her odd cravings.

 

Her belly wasn't that big yet, but when she wore tight fitting clothes or clothes with fabric that clung to her skin, her pregnancy was more obvious. When she looked at the mirror each night, wearing her nightclothes, she felt like a fat whale getting fatter. Nightclothes didn't really matter though, so she didn't think she had to worry about buying nightclothes that would hide her bulging tummy or -

 

Ding Dong

 

Ding Dong

 

Ding Dong

 

Ding Dong

 

Hachi was annoyed in more ways than one.

 

Ding Dong

 

And the person pushing the doorbell like he or she owned it was going to get it from her. Tightening her nightclothes' sash around her belly, she angrily stomped over to the door and slammed it open. “What is it!!!” She screamed at the intruder, to hell with politeness.

 

“Osaki Nana and Ren from Trapnest are rumored to be an item. We are now in front of the home of Osaki Nana LIVE and an unknown pregnant woman has answered the door.” An obvious reporter asked, thrusting a microphone in her face as several cameras and other reporters swarmed around her doorway. “Osaki Nana? Is Osaki Nana home right now?”

 

Hachi gaped openly at the camera before she gathered enough wits to retreat back into the safety of her home and slammed the door shut in the reporters' faces.

 

“What the heck was that?!” She asked nobody in particular and made sure the door was securely locked before she ran back to her room and switched the television on.

 

“— Stay tuned for any further developments, but for now let me turn you back to our correspondent back at the studio.” The same reporter who ambushed her with the questions was on TV.

 

Her eyes bugged out. “SHINICHI WAKE UP RIGHT NOW!!!”

 

Across town, a bewildered Takumi jaw literally dropped, causing his lit cigarette to fall on his lap when he saw what was just broadcasted live on the television. He just went through several emotions in the span of two seconds.

 

Surprise from turning on his TV and discovering his band mate's lovelife plastered all over the news was one.

 

Irritation directed at Ren for not heeding his warnings about being careful with the paparazzi.

 

Disgust for the way the media focused on Blast and how it seemed like they were promoting the band by using Ren and Trapnest as stepping stones.

 

A headache also came as he thought of the best course of action they were supposed to do next, but all of it flew out the window when he saw a familiar face on his TV set.

 

Screw Ren and Nana's relationship turned into fodder for the media dogs - his Nana was pregnant?! When the hell did that happen!!!?!!!