Flowers and Tea

A chill fell over Akari's body. The reality of the situation sunk in - thick and suffocating.

They took Jun... What do I do now...?

Her mind couldn't wrap around it. Couldn't accept it.

I must do something... But what am I supposed to do?

She read the note over and over again, but her hands did not cease its tremble. Each reading made it feel more real, more inescapable, as if the walls of the room were closing in on her.

Do I go to the police? No... I can't. They knew where we were. They'll know if I go there...

Her chest tightened until she could barely breathe.

Does that mean they knew about the onsen? Is Michi's family in danger? No. I'm sure they would've made a move if they knew we were there. Wait... Michi. She could help. She exhaled heavily, pressing a shaking hand to her forehead in frustration. I don't know how to contact her...

Her knees weakened, and she gripped the edge of the bed to steady herself. Her heartbeat was frantic, racing against time she didn't know if she had.

I've relied on Jun too much... What have I done...?

She looked down at the note one last time, noticing an address on the back. She took a deep breath as she realized what she needed to do. She stuffed the note into her pocket and threw the flowers into the trash.

She didn't look back.

Akari adjusted her hood and mask and left the hospital. Fear still twisted in her gut but beneath it, something else had started to form - resolve, anger, determination.

This was my fight to begin with... I'll fix this.

-

When Jun came to, the first thing he felt was pain. A deep throbbing ache in his side that pulsed with every heartbeat.

His wrists and ankles were bound behind a chair.

He blinked away the last bit of drowsiness until it was replaced with clarity and dread.

Akari... What have I done...?

The last thing he remembered was sitting in the hospital bed waiting for Akari. But what returned to him wasn't Akari, but instead someone pretending to be medical staff with a flash of something quickly pressed over his mouth.

The metal door screeched open.

Two men stepped inside. Both draped in dark clothing, faces covered with masks.

"Awake already." One called out. "A tough one aren't ya?"

The other man approached Jun, crouching just enough to be eye level. "I'm sure you know why you're here. Your little friend caused our boss too much trouble."

Jun's pulsed spiked. "Leave her alone."

The man smiled under his mask, a cold gaze of amusement in his eyes. "Oh, we will. As soon as she pays for what she did."

A rush of anger boiled Jun's blood. "If you hurt her, I'll make you regret it."

"Oh?" The man chuckled. "I don't think you understand the position you're in." He leaned in close enough that Jun could feel the chill of his words. "You're leverage. Nothing more."

A muscle in Jun's jaw twitched as he glared at the man. "If you think she's just going to give in-"

"Oh, she will." The man cut him off, almost bored. "She's predictable in that way. She's too soft."

Jun's stomach dropped. He hated how they knew how to exploit her.

"And you?" The man titled his head; a sickening laugh laced in his words. "You practically delivered yourself to us. You made it so easy. Going to a public hospital? Not very smart for someone of your background. But then again, we knew that wound of yours would bring you in the open sooner or later. We just had to wait."

Jun gritted his teeth. "Was this all just a part of your plan?"

"And you fell right into it." The man's voice dripped with satisfaction. "You really think we didn't have a backup plan? She's the type to be easily manipulated with guilt. If her past wasn't going to work then we had to go for the next best thing."

The man stood to his feet. "She won't be able to handle the responsibility of someone else's life." An obvious smirk crept to his eyes. "Especially your life."

"You underestimate her." Jun spat.

"No." The man said, voice lowered to a chilling calm. "I understand her perfectly."

Jun shook his head, fury burning behind his eyes. "You don't know her. She-"

Before he could finish, the man took a knife out of his pocket. He held it casually over Jun's bandaged side, close enough for Jun to feel the chill of the blade through the fabric. "She'll come crawling the moment she reads that note. You know it. We know it. And most importantly, she knows it."

Without warning, the blade slashed across Jun's already injured side.

Jun clenched down hard, refusing to scream through the hot sharp pain that pierced through him.

The two men moved towards the door. "Try not to die before she gets here. It ruins the whole point of negotiation."

The door slammed shut, leaving Jun bound and bleeding, breath unsteady, vision tightening around the edges.

But he wasn't afraid for himself.

He was afraid for Akari.

-

After stopping at the bank to withdraw as much money as the bank would allow in one setting, Akari made her way to the location as described by the note:

Hana's Flower Shop

It wasn't what Akari expected.

A small flower shop. Warm lights glowed from the inside. Potted plants arranged neatly outside. It was quaint. Cute. Harmless.

Of course they would hide in something so deceptively ordinary.

Akari entered the shop. A staff member in a pollen dusted apron greeted her with a smile too soft for the situation. "Welcome. We've been expecting you. If you could follow me."

Akari followed stiffly.

She was guided past the colorful bouquets and baskets of blossoming flowers towards a door for employees only.

A narrow hallway stretched behind it, with a staircase that split into two at its end. One staircase going down into darkness and the other going up.

The worker led Akari up the stairs to another door and knocked twice on it.

"Come in." A voice from the inside replied.

The staff member opened the door and gestured for Akari to enter alone.

The door closed behind her with a soft click.

The room was not much different than the flower shop below. It was warm and cozy. Full of flower decor. Smelling strongly of petals and herbs. 

A woman, not much older than Akari, sat on a couch on the other end of the room. Her red dyed hair rested neatly on her shoulders, elegant and effortless. A delicate teacup held between her fingers as she took a slow unbothered sip.

The woman placed her teacup down. "Welcome. You made it faster than I expected."

"Where is Jun?" Akari forced her voice to stand firm.

"Ah. Straight to business. I like that." She brushed a lock of hair behind her ear. "But first, would you like a cup of tea? I make the blend myself."

Akari stiffened. Tea? Is she being serious right now? "No thank you. I'm not here for tea."

The woman tilted her head as if genuinely curious. "You sure? I'm not trying to poison you. It's just really good tea."

Unease made its way into Akari's throat. "Where is Jun?"

The woman sighed as if disappointed by Akari's lack of interest in her tea. "We'll get to that." She shrugged it off like it wasn't of any importance to her. "You're here to give us what you owe us, right? I believe that should begin with a conversation."

The woman motioned to the empty seat across from her with a smile gentle and warm yet somehow unsettling. "Sit. I won't hurt you." A pause almost as if to playfully pout. "And neither will my tea."

Akari hesitated. Something about her smile, her voice, the air around her. It made her skin crawl. Not because it was threatening - it was because it wasn't.

Akari forced herself to take a seat as the woman poured her a cup of tea regardless. "You don't have to drink it, but it's there if you want."

The woman eyed the thick envelope in Akari's bag. "I believe you owe me some money to make up for your father's mistakes, would that be it in your bag?"

Something in the way the woman empathized her words made Akari pause. "Owe you...?"

"Ah, right. My apologies." She straightened her posture as her tone and eyes sharpened to the point that Akari wasn't sure this was the same woman. "I'm the one that overseas everything. You can call me Hana."