Osamu’s eyes shot open, bringing him back from his bout of unconsciousness and delivering him to the world of the living. The pale blue light of the electric lantern sitting on the rotten, wooden floor of the bowling alley pierced his hazel eyes like photon daggers stabbing through his retinas. 362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXsOPo0Vijt
A glossy sheen of cold sweat dampened his peachy skin and head of shoulder-length, raven hair. His dirty, black thermal was messily unbuttoned, exposing the golden peace sign necklace dangling against his chest as he tried to free his rope-bound wrists. His squirming and struggling made the wooden chair he was bound to creak and shudder, alerting his captor to his awakening.
The echo of high-heel shoes thumping against the ground reverberated through the abandoned bowling alley, serving as a heart-stopping reminder to Osamu that he wasn’t alone.
“I was beginning to worry you had died, Osa.”
His wicked, devilish ex-girlfriend, Yoko Akiyama, emerged from the darkness with the scent of strawberry perfume, vexation, and vengeance around her. Her elongated shadow grew smaller as she passed by the electric lantern, then stretched back out as she stepped towards Osamu. She pressed the heel of her stiletto against Osamu's chest and pointed her glimmering katana at his frightened face. Yoko had a demonic fire in her sapphire eyes, which clashed with her firebrick-colored hair.
The lantern’s light illuminated the outer strands of her hair, enwreathing them in a cyan veil. Her raised leg meant that Osamu caught a glimpse of her strawberry-pattern panties beneath her flowing, pink skirt. She wore a denim vest and a white shirt with the kanji for ‘Love' printed on it, because certainly, someone who would kidnap another person knew what love was.
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"Now then, are you ready to talk?” Yoko inquired, her smile thinly veiling her murderous intent.362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsLpp9oVH2i
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"T-talk? Talk about what?!" Osamu asked, his teeth clattering.362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNTxnCGIhW8
362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoaPUQvigPv
"Oh, I don't know, maybe why the hell you decided to come back to town after what you did!” Yoko lashed out. “Do you have a death wish?! You do, don't you?!”362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8Llv65PzSZ
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"Yoko, darling, please listen to me!”362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcK7GFuyVrJ
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"Shut up." Yoko interjected, slowly gliding her sword down from Osamu's lips and to his chest and stopping at his groin.362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeV4WPe7uXq
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"You're still as handsome as ever. It's too bad you're nothing but a filthy insect. 362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuAVA2WtUSn
Where would you like me to cut first? Your face? Your biceps? How about your—"362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡw0n0jLtCmf
362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCzKHBVA5QG
“Don't cut me anywhere! This is far too aggressive of a homecoming bash, Yoko! Even for you!” Osamu cried, trying to free his bonded hands.
Yoko sauntered over to the bleachers and plopped down in her seat with her arms crossed. “My my, and here I thought you loved me for who I was on the inside. Well, since I know the truth, I suppose I won’t be giving you the antidote anytime soon.”
She finished her sentence with a teasing wink. Osamu swallowed the burning lump in his throat, imagining some noxious brew of poison flowing through his bloodstream.
“Yoko…you poisoned me?!”
The redheaded ex snickered with amusement. “Nope! I just wanted to see the face you’d make if you thought you were going to die!”
“Please don’t play around with my mortality!” Osamu shouted with his head leaned back in both relief and vexation.
Yoko stifled a chuckle to speak. “However, you’ll never get me to tell you the code to deactivate the bombs I planted in the nearby kindergarten! Not until you formally apologize!”
“You rigged a school?!” Osamu gasped.
“Just kidding! I don’t know how to make bombs!” Yoko tittered.
“Why are you saying that as if that’s the only thing stopping you from committing a brazen act of terror?”
Yoko gasped. “My dearest Osamu, did you seriously believe that I, Yoko Akiyama, a virtuous and good-natured girl, a role model among role models, a paragon of patience and kindness, a beacon of hope and happiness, would ever commit an act of terrorism?”
“I don’t know, you already seem to have kidnapping down.”
“O, ye of little face.” Yoko sighed, shaking her head.
“Faith is the right word, Yoko!”
“Tee hee.” Yoko giggled. “I misspoke. Silly me. Indeed, faith was the right word to use, but I ask that you forgive me for my linguistic blunder just this once. After all, I’m only human. Both of the characters in the word ‘Faith’ contain the ‘Human’ radical, don’t they? It’s a rather beautiful thing. But I digress. I’ve had my fun teasing you.”
Yoko lifted herself off the bleachers, skipping back over to Osamu with her katana in hand. She circled Osamu like a vulture sniffing out a fresh carcass, gently rubbing his left shoulder to unsettle him.
Yoko’s bright tone betrayed her poorly hidden anger. “So then, do you want to explain why you disappeared for four whole years?”
“What?” Osamu gasped. “Is that what this is all about?! Why are you so hung up about this?!”
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Yoko stabbed the katana down into the ground. It stood perfectly still and upright without her holding it.
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"Why?! Maybe because you suddenly moved away from Kyoto without saying anything to me!"362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡA9mzoBB80U
362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrch2rolw5R
“I left partly because all my exes are insane!”
"What the hell did you just say?!" she furiously belted.362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtABkK2UOIj
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Yoko picked up the sword again, pressing it deeper and deeper into Osamu's chest. "We're crazy? Crazy?! After dating you, there's no such thing as crazy! All of this is perfectly normal to me!"362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoUfmWPTcTw
362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡesMhzfP16A
Osamu summoned what little defiance he had, shivering beneath Yoko’s wrathful gaze. “This is exactly why I left!” 362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMI2mKwciq7
362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡF8Aqe0dpql
"So then? Why did you come back?” Yoko asked, inching her face closer to his.362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡolH1lDfyhJ
The horrified excitement in him immediately died away as he remembered the greatest reason why he decided to return to Kyoto.
His tone grew heavy, tinged with shame. “Because…I wanted to see someone…"
For some reason, he was responded to with an unbearable silence as he looked away.
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(What? Why doesn't she say something? Wait...is she crying?!)
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Osamu returned his gaze to Yoko, her ocean-blue eyes damp with tears. She dropped her katana and tackled Osamu into a sudden hug, bringing both of them to the ground and knocking around a few of the bowling balls laying around.
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Yoko’s timbre had gone from threatening to overbearingly embracing. "Osa, you sweetheart! You really did miss me all this time?"362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDyhvidLIFp
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"Uhh..well..." Osamu mumbled.362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEGQmEFJYQH
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"I won't lie, I hated you for leaving all this time, but if you want to start over and turn a new leaf, I'd happily do it with you! I love you, Osamu!"362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5XKmG4Fsug
362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLnrhhoVmKh
(See this crap?! This is partly why I left!)
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Yoko stood up, her skirt dangling over Osamu. Yoko's hands traced up the skin of her soft, milky thighs, lifting up the skirt. Her thumbs dug themselves underneath the waist straps of her pink and white striped panties. With a slight bend of her back, Yoko lifted one of her legs out from the confines of the underwear, followed by the other leg, and let her sacred, soft, slightly wet pair of panties fall onto Osamu's face. Oddly enough, Yoko's underwear had the sweet aroma of blooming flowers attached to it.
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"Holy crap! What are you doing, Yoko?!"362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqT9zUDueUh
362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYs5D7YuIji
"Stripping! I want to make love, right here and now!" Yoko gleefully replied, the warm, wheezing, breathiness of insatiable lust permeating in her voice.362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmwTmOWJZNa
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(Do you see why I left yet!?)
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Yoko stripped off her vest and lifted her shirt to reveal her pink, see-through bra adorned with ribbons at the top of the straps. Her underwear depicted the kanji for ‘Ocean’, since the ‘Yo’ in her name was written with the character. Trying even harder now to free his hands, Osamu used any last ditch effort he could to calm her down.
"Yoko, wait, I'm not ready for this!”362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGhkXVIOTxl
362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFgFQHNPdnh
Ignoring his protests, Yoko abruptly pressed her finger against Osamu's lips, silencing him as her tongue glided across her top lip.362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcs7QmlSDgo
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"I want you to be rough with me tonight. Even if I tell you it hurts and beg you to stop, just keep going."362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTc3UIP9Hvz
362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTQ7j8RGVoG
Yoko pressed her finger through Osamu's lips and inserted it into his mouth, for reasons that surely only had to do with love. She removed her finger and sucked on it, her face blushing at the taste. "You're so delicious, love! I’m so happy I get to taste you again! Let’s do it!"362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpa6sjtyqyh
362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdMd5eS9hwT
“Wait!" Osamu yelled as a sudden explosion through the wall rocked the bowling alley and disrupted them. Osamu coughed and wheezed as smoke filled the bowling lanes as well as his lungs.362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBS158kOMFH
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From the explosion alone, Osamu could already discern who was crashing Yoko’s party. ”Oh no, it’s…”362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3TJXRKaYrk
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“Her." Yoko finished.
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An armed squad of mercenaries stormed the bowling alley and pointed their guns and blinding flashlights at Yoko, casting her shadow upon the dilapidated bowling lanes behind her. A rather familiar voice rang out from the smoke.
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"Well, well, well. Look who we have here. Yoko Akiyama and Osamu Ashikaga. My rival and my first love, both in one place. Perfect."362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsFbnzXykcE
362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuRVPH1kDrN
Yoko bit her lip. ”Damn it, and I made sure I wasn't followed!"
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Out from the smoke came Isabella Bailey, an American girl with long, blonde hair decorated with metal beads, emerald-green eyes, and quite the nice rack. Her nails were each painted red, white and blue, in honor of her home country. A silver angel wing necklace dangled below her collarbone.
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(Yoko, you're so stupid! You can't forget her father is a U.S. general! She has connections to the U.S. military and even more connections to mercenary groups across the globe!)362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmW5Kw8R8Ix
362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4tJKIm6sVZ
Yoko boldly stepped forth two paces, as if to guard Osamu. "How rude of you, Gaijin. We were just about to make love after four years apart." Yoko always loved to call Isabella 'Gaijin' for being just that—a foreigner.362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYY1xKXWML6
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"L-love?! Osamu, you cheating bastard!" Isabella yelled with a flustered expression.362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ25xUwAHHJO
"How is it cheating?! We already broke up!"362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLtyfodzzwo
362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡETpAPnGvwv
"But I still love you, you dummy! How could you just leave like that?!"362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGRnNmOZwLo
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"Osamu loves me more.” Yoko proclaimed. “Your affection for him means nothing. Now scram, Gaijin."362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCy7D5SzrTV
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Isabella's anger festered and quickly boiled over at the mere utterance of her disgraceful nickname. "Don't...call me...Gaijin!"
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Isabella whipped out her lustrous, golden desert eagle and aimed it at Yoko. At the same time, Yoko grabbed her panties and katana off of the floor, pointing the latter at Isabella. The two were locked in a deadly, jealous standoff.
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"So? What happens now? Are you really ready to die?” Yoko asked, her fierce stare focused on Isabella's eyes.362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYEk177lp0A
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"Please, you crazy bitch. I'm the one with the gun here."362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCxOf4CdgST
362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnhSxg3RbvD
"Both of you, stop this immediately! This is cr—"362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwkiFufYrpc
362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAZT2uvkgRQ
(Wait a minute! This is the perfect time for me to get out of these ropes and escape! They might kill each other, but I can at least be free! Just gotta work these ropes off...)
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The two exes stared daggers into each other’s eyes, ready to interpret the slightest movement, the slightest twitch of the eye, as a threat. When Isabella dared to blink, Yoko suddenly had the excuse she needed to escalate the violence. Yoko slashed the gun in half with her katana and kicked Isabella into her squad of guns for hire. She dashed back to Osamu, quickly cutting his ropes and taking his hand.
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"Damn you! Shoot them!” Isabella ordered, winded from the kick.
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As they ran out of the bowling alley and out into the empty, dark streets, they avoided the storm of bullets behind them that tore apart the walls and shattered the glass of the abandoned building. They kept on running, refusing to even look back.
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Osamu lamented this twisted trick of fate as Yoko led him by the hand. “I knew I should've just stayed home! This is all your fault, Yoko! Why did you have to kidnap me?!"362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ81ochUP2HR
362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6Gk6HzceZU
"My fault?! What am I supposed to do against her?! She has too many connections! If anything, it's your fault for making your return so high-profile!”362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZzmib4K0V9
362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYijBjnsIBD
"What the hell do you mean?!” Osamu recoiled in offense.362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNvDJYs1sM2
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"I saw you posting photos on Twitter, you jerk!"362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4UYoic0jWd
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(She stalks my social media?)362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgiEyuZE17V
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"This is bullshit!” Osamu cried, wondering if suicide was really such a bad thing after all.
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Yoko took Osamu into an alleyway, where they could hide from Isabella's army of mercenaries. Even if just for a moment, the darkness and silence of the alley offered them a sense of peace after all of that chaos.
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"We lost them for now.” Yoko said, catching her strained breath as she peered out into the streets from the shadows of the alley.
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She held up her pair of panties, remembering she still hadn't put them back on. Of course, any normal girl would recognize it if it felt a little too breezy between her legs, but for Yoko, it always felt like that when she longed for Osamu.
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"Oh, did you want to have a whiff before I put these back on?” Yoko offered, as if it were a matter of common sense and politesse.362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwqcpz1hsEY
362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUBQkTljT1T
Osamu shook his head. ”No, that's fine! Go ahead and put them back on!"362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYCl7dUFWyU
362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡS9ZZPBO8lp
Yoko shrugged as she began putting her underwear back on. ”Okay then. Don't complain later.”362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9MBC2piJRJ
362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMByXMIB3Po
"Believe me, I won’t!" he sternly replied.
“…You weren’t complaining the first time we slept together…” Yoko mumbled.
A caravan of chills traveled down Osamu’s spine as the cold of the night sunk its fangs into his skin. Goosebumps riddled his skin, forcing a nervous shiver out of him. This chill felt familiar, almost nostalgic to Osamu. He remembered this exact sensation, this gnawing, supernatural bite of cold. Once he recalled the sensation, he also remembered the person it belongs too. He turned around and saw yet another ghost from the past before his eyes.
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Out from the darkness of the alleyway emerged a beautiful girl with raven hair, skin as pale as rainclouds, and lips stricken with cyanosis. As beautiful as she was, the girl bore the visage of a corpse drained of its warmth. The thing is, that’s exactly what she was. More specifically, she was the one and only Izanami-no-Mikoto, an actual, living goddess. Her sleeveless summer dress depicted swaying branches of cherry blossoms, drawn against light, white fabric.
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"You?! Coprse!” Yoko insensitively shouted.362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCkjQhF08LM
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Izanami's voice was as gentle as a spring meadow, which made her audible offense even more guilt-inducing. "Corpse? Why would you say something so hurtful?! What have I ever done to you?"362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡx8LiU4Kbvu
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"You are Izanami, after all. I assume you're here because of Osamu as well?” Yoko questioned, recovering from her initial surprise.362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeVcA70p1ee
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Watching his two exes converse with some familiarly between them proved confusing to Osamu. ”Hold on, since when do you two know each other?"362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnv9iS1l8Cp
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"It's a long story, Osamu." Yoko replied.
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Izanami hugged Osamu from behind, refusing to let him go as he resisted. She spoke with a playful bounciness in her tone as her cheeks turned pink with excitement.
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"I heard the noise up ahead and knew it was Izzy. The only thing that drives her crazy enough to use deadly force is Osamu! Why didn't you tell me you were back in town, Osamu?! Do you wanna come over to my place and watch movies? There's no hard feelings between you and me, I promise! You left without any warning, but I forgive you! Let's catch up and talk, okay?"362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbrXkkmiCtA
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"Listen, I've had the worst night so far!” Osamu said as he tried to reason with perhaps his most reasonable ex-girlfriend.362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡap5GgXpKx8
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"Osamu is coming home with me, and we are going to have rough sex until the break of dawn!" Yoko exclaimed.362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOgXV0wmQL0
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"Like hell we are! I just want to get home!” Osamu protested.
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Those words echoed through Izanami's precious, porcelain heart. She began to cry as she fell to Osamu's knees, hugging onto his leg as she looked back up at him with tears running down her cheeks.
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"I-is that true, Osamu? Do you still love Yoko?” Izanami fretted.362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0sQmH3YjKt
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Yoko pointed her blade at Osamu, her blue eyes shining fiercely in the darkness.362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXhZRxf3van
"What's that for?!” Osamu asked with a nervous chuckle.362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpgWeChPpOO
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Yoko didn’t blink once as she began her prattling. ”Well, Osamu? You do love me right? Go on. Tell her. Tell her how much you love your beautiful, precious darling, Yoko Akiyama. Tell her you love me, we're getting married soon, and we're going to have twenty-four babies."362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwcW6lDUxZb
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"For god's sake, twenty-four?! Are we starting a clan?!"362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡW8KluPSDol
362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCK8Kyz8mhl
"We're revitalizing the Akiyama and Ashikaga clans, to be precise."362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnoUS4lcd57
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"Well? Who do you love?" Izanami curiously asked.362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡChMALUkfh8
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Out from the streets, yet another familiar, apoplectic voice rang out with a thunderous shout. ”Let him go!"
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Osamu’s world stopped for just a brief moment. All of the chaos surrounding him seemed to melt away as the girl’s familiar voice enticed his ears. Taking a gander at her, his eyes confirmed the girl’s identity as Aika Mihara.
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Aika stood just outside the alleyway, the tendrils of her wavy, chestnut-colored hair flowing in the wind like a tattered battle flag. She wore a floral t-shirt with a leather jacket over it, the shirt depicting thorn-covered roses and tiny hearts broken in half. Her brown eyes matched her hair, and her black, torn jeans matched the darkness of her jacket. The shirt was a little too short, teasing a partial view of her pierced belly button.
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"Seriously?! You too?! How the hell am I gonna get rid of three bodies?!” Yoko asked, as if she were actually considering committing a triple homicide.362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTj8JuJB9WU
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"Izanami, let him go! I still owe him a black eye for breaking my heart!" Aika said with fury in her voice.362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXmvrywsqvy
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Osamu could only look around at his assortment of ex-girlfriends, darting his eyes from one girl to the other. “How does everyone know I even-"362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwprEpoOdDr
362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2sonvjqRuc
(Wait, Yoko said she saw me post pictures on the internet! Does that mean they all stalk my social media?!)362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoh95QL1FQZ
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Seeing the evils of social media, Yoko gave her sage advice to Osamu on the matter."You should really just throw all of your electronics in a river, Osamu."362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLbaRhyQCcF
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"No way! Osamu wants to watch movies with me!" exclaimed Izanami, lightheartedly protesting against Aika.362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCOfIl23fi8
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"He wants to make love to me and rebuild our relationship!" declared Yoko.362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡU3ik3HCCLQ
Aika could only respond with a simple yet effective, "Shut the hell up!"
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In a bout of callous hatred and probable insanity, Aika tossed a bundle of live fireworks into the alley, their fuses already hissing as sparks traveled from their tips towards the explosives.
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Yoko, in utter shock, muttered to herself. "That...that crazy bitch! Run!”
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Everyone bolted out of the alleyway and back onto the street as the fireworks splashed inside the alleyway and flashed blue light all around, accompanied by explosive blooms and ear-ringing whistles. Once again, everyone stopped to catch their breath, unable to believe that the night could get any worse.
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"Maybe I really should just stay with Yoko..." Osamu conceded as his hope in humanity waned by the minute.362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZAdzxF7pDX
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Izanami flicked her eyes to Osamu with a gasp. ”Osa! I thought you loved me!"362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5YKTmH6rRl
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"I don't like repeating myself, Corpse! He loves me!” Yoko re-asserted.362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmFKjoYFDM2
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"I don't give a damn who he loves! He's dead! Osamu!” Aika interjected as she came around the bend.362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcxT8YGbmxh
362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUPYdEjuKov
Osamu, trying to reason with maniacs, did his best to curtail Aika's wrath. "Aika, baby, lets talk about this! There's a lot that none of you guys know!"362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJtma3Uh1c1
362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ21kZIB63J9
"Baby?!" Yoko shouted, like an inquisitor that just caught a whiff of heresy. "Oh, I see what's going on here, Osamu. This Rock n' Roll whore is your mistress!"362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjAkcp7FOqD
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"How could you jump to such an insane conclusion, Yoko?!” Osamu cried.
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Aika charged towards Osamu with the intent to punch him, but...
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“Whoa! Aika, wait!” Osamu warned.362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGFlTDQwa22
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"Don't tell me what t—"
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She suddenly fell face first on the pavement. She tripped on her shoelaces, of all things. Truly a blunder among blunders, an embarrassment among embarrassments.
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"You were never good at tying your shoes…" Osamu sighed.362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7PHeYjHMTB
362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIZQpfI9STy
Aika, with a bloody nose, began bawling like a baby. ”Don't look at me!"362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCtR6tdNkph
362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4LcgwlAGFC
"You were always a crybaby too. Here,” Osamu said as he passed her a handkerchief from his shirt pocket.362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYD5XrmzTei
362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQypJl8PcpV
(Thank god I'm one of those assholes that always carries around a handkerchief.)362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcrDoZImOfC
362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoBG5cNObbN
"F-for me? Really?” Aika asked, shocked that Osamu would do anything remotely nice for once.362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxS6V1H3kFt
362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHo86xemRSw
"Come on, go ahead and use it. I've been meaning to talk to you Aika, about a lot of things.”362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2T9fr3byFO
362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbENAGs47Ua
Aika saw lament in his eyes, her anger dissipating for just a moment.”Osamu…"362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1vThyz00LX
362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoswymXjt5I
"Keep staring at him lovingly like that, and I'll gouge your eyes out.” Yoko calmly interrupted.362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡc9gmuNlcM9
Aika retaliated. "You don't scare me, bitch!"362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpLNC2KNRhn
362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQxe7BYPVMF
Izanami simply sulked while the fires of vitriol consumed the group again. ”I want a handkerchief too..."362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKgF79oYmmD
362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNEMSvn9iGx
"Ah-hah! Found you!" Isabella shouted as she returned in full force.362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEhQCQ7rIah
362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡioaRbU1DlI
(There she is again! And she brought her troops with her!)362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZvOWCmQfHN
362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡD41RB4Jfhv
”Oh, so it looks like all of the exes have come out of the woodworks!” Isabella teased. “It's time to die, everyone! Are you ready, boys? Fire on my mark! One! Two! Three!"362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5iS0IpY4Ol
362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡldrcBVyBg1
(So this is how I'm going to die, gunned down in the streets like some animal. Here I come, Death. Embrace me gently.)
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Suddenly, one of the mercenaries' digital watches rang out with a rapid-fire beat.
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"What the hell is that? That's not gunfire I'm hearing!” Isabella cursed.362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0D9Xv9jwaf
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The mercenary captain gave the signal to his comrades to end their operation. “All right, pack it up folks! This is all the time we got paid for, Ms.Bailey. Have your father wire the money whenever he can."
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The soldiers for hire all dispersed into the streets and headed back home, leaving Isabella all by her lonesome. It was a beautifully euphoric moment for Yoko, who erupted into taunting laughter as Isabella's face turned beet-red.
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"Oh look at that! Gaijin is all by her poor, lonesome self while I have my man and my blade! What are you going to do, Gaijin? Will you run and cry back to the United States of Crybaby Land?"362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3hpr4thXBT
362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8WT5EUkISk
Flustered and infuriated beyond belief, Isabella's power and maturity seemed to devolve into that of a bratty little girl. "Damn you, Osamu! Why did you come back here?! You should've stayed gone!"362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhML7HL0aUP
362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3NAajcttPc
"Don't talk that way about my eternal husband!” Izanami harshly interrupted.362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡf53kRkpWDc
Osamu's mind was blown from the sheer boldness of her assertion. "Husband?!"362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnFFfRxucMK
362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡU1EszAQJJ5
"You don't want to get married?” Izanami questioned, confused by Osamu's confusion.
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Amidst their arguing, the howling roar of a jet engine cut through the air. The deafening power of the droning jet hushed the entire group. Isabella’s phone rang in her pocket, and she hesitantly answered the call.
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“H-hello?" Isabella nervously muttered.362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKEKMa3lQfY
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"Isabella, this is Fox One-Niner, target in sight and JDAM being released in five, four…”362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzy4dkwcx1y
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"Oh my god! Duck!” Isabella shouted.362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcD81aDRky5
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Osamu stood utterly dumbfounded and perplexed by Isabella's sudden panic. "What's happening?!"362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡo9dLyoby5y
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"Just duck!” Yoko screamed as she forced Osamu down to the ground with everyone else.362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡF9YJV2GEYr
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Everyone huddled on the sidewalk together as a fighter jet released two JDAM's in the direction of Osamu's house. The explosion and subsequent tower of black smoke was visible from their position, rocking the entire neighborhood like Godzilla's footsteps.362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoQc6O0Hnr0
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Osamu’s hands shot up to the back of his head. ”Izzy! Did you call an airstrike on my house?!"362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEtmUW8BbR6
362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGCc7DncwsR
"I'm sorry! He came late!” Isabella said, verging on tears.362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡt6EOwkDIdq
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"That's not the problem here!” Osamu shouted.362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4f7mbCzrUg
362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSMItmJ9bIF
"Isabella, this is Fox One Niner, good effect on target. The building is completely destroyed. Returning to base, over and out."362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjxX6OPbHTb
362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡerIlKq2z2c
Yoko smugly rubbed Izzy's mess up in her face. "See? You always mess everything up."362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmgHybIZD0l
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“Crap…” Izzy regretfully moaned.362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYWWyu2Fm0b
362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3mK18gxC91
"Now I have nowhere to live...I'm homeless! I'll have to beg for money and dig for food in trash cans!” Osamu lamented.362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2CdGuCfK4J
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Yoko threw her arm over Osamu's shoulder, holding him tight like a graceful savior. "Save your tears, my love. Tears do not belong on a man's face! Until Isabella can find you a new place, you can come live with me! It works out great, because now I can massage you to relieve you of your stress! You know, down there!"362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpQmMIH0tf8
362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2a1VxHUdCK
His vision coning, Osamu slumped down on the sidewalk, cursing his predicament. “I hate my life..."362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHZKmX9I0b1
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(I think...no way...I'm so angry...that I'm starting to lose consciousness...)
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Osamu blacked out right then and there just from the sheer anger and stress of it all. The girls shrieked and huddled around him in the middle of the street, each of them wearing oddly angry expressions on their faces. It was as if they felt it was unfair Osamu was able to fall unconscious instead of being awake to comprehend their rage and psychotic love. Despite their attempts to keep him lucid, Osamu fell into a deep, dark slumber.
Raptured away from his maniacal exes, Osamu used this time of freedom to air out his thoughts to himself. The stupefying intensity of his exes’ expressions of love and hatred were to be expected upon his return, in all truth. Perhaps not to the degree they displayed that night, but in a way, their irrational actions did make him truly feel like he had finally come home.
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(That was her...the one I wanted to see. I mean, I wanted to make amends with all of them, but especially with her...with Aika. I wonder what she's been up to since I left. I wonder how she's been. I wonder...if it's too late to say that I'm sorry for her loss.)
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When he awoke, he was in a bedroom, laying in a king-sized bed. A blue lava lamp on the table next to the bed provided a ghostly glow of ocean-colored light.
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(What is this? Was it all just a bad dream? Did I die? Or...)
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He turned to his right and saw a naked Yoko cuddling with him, half-asleep and softly breathing onto his chest.
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(This is Yoko's place?!)362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYdv4w89I7r
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Yoko, half asleep, moaned with soft breath. ”Mmmm. Osamu, you beast. That felt so good."362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6St1MRQg86
362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡra6FypKW6Q
(Dear god, was I molested while I was unconscious?!)362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGkMrWerYEY
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Osamu nervously grinned, curious enough to ask a question but ultimately scared of the answer. ”Umm..did we..."362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0GywrqKBrK
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“No. That…was a ruse…” she whispered, drifting back to sleep.362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRksW95RzyB
362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqcX60NomkC
(I don't know whether to be aroused or to call the police...but I guess...this is how my first night back starts, huh? This is going to be one hell of a ride.)362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡccyc5tIoRa
362Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUYbwSLJQXd
End of the First Day
