CHAPTER 45: LOVE TRIANGLE (1)

The next morning, Haruto was still lying in bed trying to figure out how the hell to navigate the minefield his life had become when his phone buzzed. Unknown number. He almost ignored it, but something made him pick up.

"Hello?"

"Good morning, Haruto-kun." The voice was unmistakably Azame’s – that cool, controlled tone that somehow managed to sound both polite and vaguely threatening at the same time.

"Azame?" He sat up in bed, instantly more awake. "How did you get my number?"

"I have my ways," she said simply, like having his personal phone number was the most natural thing in the world. Which, knowing her connections, it probably was. "Today is Sunday. I thought we could spend some time together."

Spend time together. Coming from anyone else, that would sound like a normal request for a date. Coming from Azame, it sounded more like a politely worded command.

"I..." Haruto started, then stopped. He’d already promised Satsuki he’d spend the entire Sunday with her. After last night’s perfume incident, bailing on her seemed like a really, really bad idea. "Sorry, but I already have plans today. Maybe another time?"

There was a pause on the other end of the line. When Azame spoke again, her voice was still perfectly pleasant, but there was something underneath it that made his skin crawl.

"I see. That’s unfortunate." Another pause. "In that case, I suppose I’ll have to send some of my people to come collect you instead. They can be quite... persuasive when they need to be."

The casual way she said it made it ten times worse. She wasn’t even trying to sound threatening – she was just stating a fact. Like mentioning the weather.

Haruto’s blood ran cold. The last thing he needed was a bunch of yakuza thugs showing up at his house while Satsuki was there. He could already picture how that would go down, and it ended with a bloodbath.

"Okay, okay," he said quickly. "I’ll come. Just... give me some time to handle things here first."

"Wonderful," Azame said, and he could practically hear the smile in her voice. "I’ll text you the address. Don’t keep me waiting too long, Haruto-kun."

The line went dead, and almost immediately his phone buzzed with a message containing an address for some upscale shopping district downtown.

He dragged himself out of bed and trudged downstairs, trying to figure out how to explain this to Satsuki without making things worse. She was in the kitchen making breakfast, humming softly to herself. She looked so peaceful and content that he almost felt guilty for what he was about to do.

"Morning, Satsuki," he said, trying to sound casual.

She turned and smiled at him, that bright, genuine smile that made his chest feel tight. "Good morning, Haruto. I was just making your favorite pancakes. I thought we could spend a nice, quiet day together."

This was going to be even harder than he thought.

"Actually," he said, rubbing the back of his neck, "I was wondering if maybe I could go hang out with a friend today. Just for a few hours."

The smile on her face didn’t fade, but something shifted in her eyes. "A friend?"

"Yeah, just... you know. Haven’t seen them in a while, and they really wanted to catch up." He was rambling now, trying to fill the silence. "But I was thinking, maybe we could spend time together tonight instead? Just the two of us, no interruptions..."

He let the implication hang in the air, hoping she’d take the bait. Satsuki’s cheeks flushed pink, and she looked down at the pancakes she was flipping.

"Tonight?" she asked softly.

"Yeah. The whole evening. We could watch a movie, or talk, or..." He stepped closer, close enough to smell her shampoo. "Whatever you want."

She was quiet for a long moment, then looked up at him with those big, expressive eyes. "You promise? The whole evening?"

"I promise."

Before he could react, she was on her tiptoes, her arms around his neck, pressing her lips against his. The kiss was soft and sweet and tasted like strawberries from the pancake batter she’d been making. It lasted maybe three seconds, but it was enough to make his heart race and his brain go completely blank.

When she pulled away, her face was bright red, but she was smiling.

"Okay," she said quietly. "But don’t be too late."

"I won’t," he managed, his voice coming out rougher than he intended. The taste of her lips was still on his mouth, and all he wanted to do was pull her back and kiss her again. But if he did that, he’d never leave the house, and then Azame would send her people, and then everything would go to hell.

So instead, he grabbed his jacket and headed for the door, trying very hard not to think about the way Satsuki had felt pressed against him.

The shopping district Azame had chosen was one of those fancy places where everything cost more than Haruto’s monthly allowance. He found her sitting at an outdoor café, looking completely at ease in a way that somehow made her even more intimidating. She was dressed casually – jeans and a simple blouse – but she still managed to look like she owned the entire street.

"You came," she said as he approached, though she didn’t sound surprised.

"Did I have a choice?" he muttered, dropping into the chair across from her.

"There’s always a choice, Haruto-kun. Some choices just have more... unpleasant consequences than others." She signaled the waiter. "Coffee? Or are you more of a juice person?"

They ended up walking through the shopping district after that, with Azame pointing out various stores and making casual conversation like they were old friends. It was surreal. Here was this girl who basically owned half the criminal underground, talking to him about whether he preferred classical music or jazz like they were on a normal date.

"You know," she said as they passed a bookstore, "I’ve been curious about something. What made you start carrying yourself differently at school?"

"Different?" He tried to play dumb, but her sharp eyes told him she wasn’t buying it.

"The way you walk, the way you hold yourself. Even the way you look at people has changed. It’s subtle, but..." She shrugged. "I notice things."

Before he could come up with an answer, something caught his eye across the street. A familiar figure standing near a lamppost, staring directly at them with an expression that made his stomach drop.

Akiko.

She just stared at him. Like she’d caught him doing something terrible, which, considering the circumstances, maybe he had. Her shoulders were slumped, and even from this distance he could see the way her face had fallen.

"Shit," he breathed, already moving toward the crosswalk.

"Something wrong?" Azame asked, following his gaze. Her expression sharpened when she spotted Akiko. "Friend of yours?"

Haruto was already jogging across the street, dodging between cars. By the time he reached Akiko, she was already turning to leave.

"Wait," he called out. "Akiko, wait up."

She stopped but didn’t turn around. "I didn’t mean to interrupt your date, Haruto-kun."

"It’s not—" He started, then stopped. How could he explain this without making everything worse? "How did you even know I was here?"

She finally turned to face him, and the hurt in her eyes was like a punch to the gut. "I was shopping with my sister. I saw you two together and I..." She trailed off, shaking her head. "It doesn’t matter. I should go."

"Akiko—"

"Is this your girlfriend?"

Haruto spun around to find Azame standing right behind him, having crossed the street with considerably more grace than his panicked sprint. She was studying Akiko with the same intensity she brought to everything else, like she was trying to figure out exactly what kind of threat she represented.

"I..." Haruto looked between them, his mind racing. Akiko was still looking at him with that wounded expression, and Azame was waiting for an answer with that patient, dangerous smile.

And then, suddenly, he had an idea. It was probably stupid, definitely risky, but it might just work.

"Yeah," he said, reaching out to take Akiko’s hand. "Yeah, she is."