Chapter 14: Again They Meet

The clock ticked slowly.

His eyes remained glued to the ceiling, the violet orbs scanning over every little detail above him as if he was counting stars. Takabi's hands rested behind his head, white locks tangled between his fingers as he breathed in and exhaled heavy flames, trying to stabilize his anger towards Carlos, and his racing mind of his father.

Carlos' sudden mood shift meant Takabi couldn't trust him, couldn't keep him around him or anyone he knew. He was hurt, and Carlos is his best friend. He felt awful about what he had said, but Carlos also stepped too far over the line. Distance would be good for them both, at least then he could figure out what he was going to say next time he saw him.

His father, however, was a different problem all together.

Was he really in the same building, in the same space, hiding among the other guests? What for? For what purpose? To find Takabi? To kidnap him and bring him away without anyone noticing? No, that would be too simple an idea, with no clear goal in Takabi's mind for it to make any sense.

For a moment, his mind flashed back to the dance last year. Time had stopped and a man had talked to him. At first it never registered, but it was possible that man was his father, and he had been watching him since then.

Yet if that was true, what was the purpose of keeping himself hidden now? Was it possible Kairas lied, and that his own memories were wrong?

Takabi looked at the clock, reading eight sharp before sitting up and switching his gaze towards the window.

"When did it get so dark? Damn, I missed dinner." He said, hopping to his feet and moving towards the phone at the foot of the bed. When he picked it up, the room door opened and Nana strolled in. When they looked at each other, she held a strong scowl at him, slamming the door and making her way straight for the bathroom, before slamming that door as well.

"I take it you're mad," He said, loud enough for her to hear.

It was silent for a moment, the shower starting up. He sighed, placing the phone down and ignoring his appetite. "Nana, come on. Let me explain."

All that met him was the sound of the rushing water.

He coughed into his fist, as if to draw her attention. His feet carried him towards the wooden door, and he turned the knob, surprised to see it wasn't locked. He stepped into the bathroom, closing the door and leaning against the wall, his eyes falling on Nana's blurry body through the shower glass. "Are you gonna ignore me all night?"

"If I tried, you wouldn't leave me alone." She said, water splashing against the shower floor. Steam began to coat the bathroom, laying itself on the mirrors. "You have ten mintues to explain what the hell happened between you two."

"Take it easy," He said, listening to the venom in her tone. "Okay, I admit it, I probably could have handled the situation better, but he pushed my buttons and tried blaming me for things I had no control over."

"Like what," She asked. Her voice sounded a bit more relaxed.

"He blamed me for what happened to Carrie. No softcore blame either. He full on told me to my face, it was MY fault she died. He also started venting about how fucked his life has been lately. I told you about his parents, right?"

"You and Jewel." She confirmed, brushing her hair back and letting the water hit her face. "Look, Takabi, I understand being angry, but saying what you did, and punching him before that certainly doesn't make the situation any better. At all. You both need to talk things out, come to an understanding."

"I don't think that's possible, Boo." He sighed, and ran a frustrated hand through his hair. "I can't trust him around you either."

"Ariel told me about that bit." She admitted. Her voice deflated, the angel biting her lip softly. "I'd be mad too if someone said something like that to my face about you. You don't have to worry about anything like that though, you should know that."

"And you do," He asked, sliding the shower door aside. She covered herself in surprise, watching his expression. His face was blank, yet there was a slight crack of a simmering frustration.

"Well, I mean… We did get together kind of suddenly.. I don't blame you if some other girl catches your eye." She whispered, her voice suddenly hovering.

"I thought we were talking about Carlos and me? When did this become a conversation about your insecurities." He said.

She watched him, her lips opening slowly as if she were going to reply, but the words were lost on her. When she didn't respond, he removed his swim trunks and tossed them next to her bikini, stepping into the shower with her and letting the water run over his bare body.

His hair quickly stuck to his forehead as he peered down at her, Nana feeling her space suddenly get smaller.

His glare. It was terrifying, but not in the scary sense. The longer she looked into his eyes, the more she read his feelings, for her at least.

"There is no one else, Nana." His voice was gentle, fingers brushing against her skin. She visibly shuddered, placing her hands against her chest, trailing her finger over his body. "No one, in any way, compares to you."

"Bullshit." She said, laughing halfheartedly. "You can have any girl you want."

"Not true. See, I have this amazing ability called staying out of the spotlight. I seemed to have mastered it in my years of amnesia." He smiled at her, raising her chin slightly. "Either way, why is it so hard to believe I only want you?"

"Because… I'm not… Amazing…"

"Girl, no one can deal with me the way you do. My emotions, my mentality, being my strength, not to mention the way I like to shake the bed." She laughed at his words, never taking her eyes off him. "You're perfect for me. That's a fact. That promise we made as kids is something I really want to keep. More for me than you, admittedly."

"Selfish asshole," She said suddenly, kissing him. She pressed against him, their kiss deepening without them realizing it, to the point Takabi held her tight against the wall, her legs wrapped around his hips. Her fingers tangled up his hair, her grip tight on his locks. She broke the kiss, a loud moan and gasp filling the bathroom from her throat.

The pair would've continued, but Takabi picked up slight vibrations from the door. Groaning, he kissed her throat and pried himself away from her, stepping out and drying himself some before wrapping a towel around his waist.

Nana covered her mouth, her face deepening in a strong shade of red. "Fuck, was I loud?"

"Doubt it. These walls are kind of thick. It's probably Carlos." He said, opening the bathroom door. "Get dressed," He told her, tossing her another towel which she quickly wrapped around her body.

Takabi moved towards the door to the hallway, opening it and beginning to speak.

"Look, Carlos, before you say anything, I'm so…." His words stopped cold, hanging in their air as his eyes went wide like dinner plates. Sweat beads dropped from his still wet hair, and he took a defense step back, flames dancing around his knuckles.

His expression went from shock to caution extremely quick, his breathing steadied even though he couldn't sense any hostility coming from him. "What the hell are you doing here, and how did you find me?"

"Who is it," Nana's voice called out. She came from the bathroom, dressed in one of Takbi's T-Shirts and an old pair of beige leggings. Her eyes peered past her boyfriend, widening like his when her eyes met green ones.

Awkwardly, Kairas coughed into his fist, face a tiny bit pale and sweat dripping from his forehead. "Did… I come at a bad time?"

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The air was thick with tension.

Nana stood by the counter, pouring tea into three mugs for them all. She picked up two by the handle, placing them in front of the boys before taking her own and sitting next to Takabi, her hands shaking slightly against the warm glass.

Kairas picked it up, taking a deep inhale of the drink before placing his chapped and slightly bloody lips to the mug, drinking deeply. Takabi leaned on the table, looking between his twin and Nana. "Well… Why are you here, Kairas?"

He placed the mug down, his face one of desperation, as if he hadn't eaten or drinken anything in days. "More please."

Nana hesitated, but took his mug and walked towards the tea machine.

Kairas reached into his pocket, taking out a gold locket and placing it down on the table between them. "I'll cut to the chase. He's alive."

"He… Oh. Father. Yeah, I figured he was." Takabi's tone was monotone. "I have a feeling I ran into him earlier."

Nana whipped her head around, so fast a heavy breeze rushed past the pair, blowing the magazines on the table to the floor. "WHAT?! When was this!?"

"When I was coming back upstairs." Takabi replied, reaching down to pick up the magazines. Purposely choosing not to mention the initial encounter a while prior, he kept his tone as unreadable as he could.

When he came back up, he placed them on the wood and picked up the locket, examining it closely. "I wasn't sure if it was really him or not. I was going to tell you when I had some proof."

"That aside, I also encountered him before I came here. In Egypt."

"Egypt? What were you doing out there?"

"Traveling," Kairas said bluntly. "Searching for myself. Trying to regain the light I lost somehow." He reached up, placing his hand over his heart. "I think I regained some, but I know that doesn't erase bad blood between us. We've been enemies, and still are in your eyes. To me, now, we have a common goal and issues to worry about, so I can forgo that bad blood for a little while."

"Common goal? If I had to guess, you also had a wolf woman attack you for your Gems," Takabi asked quickly.

Kairas raised an eyebrow at his brother and shook his head. "No woman. A man. If you can call it that. Large, burly and grey. Can't comprehend anything aside from what it was programmed to do." Pausing a moment to inhale, he continued with, "Both sound like Hunterclass either way."

"So," Nana began, placing a cup in front of Kairas. "We have Hunters who want you two and Aqua, in addition to your father suddenly turning up and this mysterious group who is possibly led by your mother's evil soul. Sounds like there's a lot brewing in the shadows, huh?"

Takabi nodded at her words, stopping only when he looked at Kairas, and reading his twin's confused expression. "Right, we have a lot of information on our side I guess we can share with you." He wrinkled his nose. "First. Go take a shower. You smell awful."