Be My Strength

I couldn’t believe I was standing in front of the gate somewhere in Shibuya District. How could I be so stupid followed what Andy wanted me to do for him? What if this was some kind of fugitive lair? Andy pushed the doorbell and a second later someone talked to him via the interphone.

“Who’s there?” Asked the man behind the speaker.

“It’s me, can I come in?” Said Andy.

“Owh Andy, wait a second. I’ll open the door for you” he replied.

A moment later there was a sound of a hydraulic machine pulled the gate up. I thought I was going to see a Japanese man covered in tattoos like yakuza that I only saw in the movie, but I was wrong. The one who opened the gate was a man in a same age like me, maybe a little bit older.

“Andy! Man, it’s been a long time. How are you mate?” He hugged him and punched Andy’s upper chest.

“Been good Elliot!” Andy punched him back.

I was just standing behind Andy and made a weird faces while looking at them. The man who named Elliot glanced at me, “and who are you?” Smile came from the edge of his lips.

I didn’t say a word and Elliot kept waiting for me to answer him. Andy nudged my shoulder and glared at me. I frowned at him and gave a rejected kind of look signaling him that I wouldn’t do whatever he wanted me to do right now. We were like having a silent fight with our facial expressions. Suddenly Elliot burst into laughter. He was holding his tummy and he punched the wall.

“You guys are hilarious! Enough with that come on in!” He invited us in while he was trying real hard not to laugh at us anymore.

Andy took one step forward and he glanced at me, giving me a sign to come inside the flat with him. I didn’t move, not even an inch. “I’m not going anywhere!” I told him and he snorted. Andy walked back to me and he grabbed my hand and dragged me inside.

“Let me go!”

“Yeah yeah yeah…” He kept walking and ignoring me.

“Let me go you stupid tattoo head!”

“Oh wow Andy! Looks like your new girlfriend is pretty tough, eh?” Elliot chuckled.

“I am not his girlfriend! He kidna…”

“Hey hey hey come on,” Andy cut my words and he even embraced me with his arm. “I know you’re made at me baby, but don’t say that to my buddy Elliot.”

“What are you doing!?” I pushed him but it just made him pulled me closer to him.

“Just pretend that we’re a couple, or Elliot will thinks something is going wrong,” he whispered at me trying not to mad Elliot heard what he said.

“Something is going wrong, to be honest!” I whispered to him back.

“Could you please do me a favor? I don’t want him to think that I kidnap you or anything. Behave please!”

“Talking about irony,” I said.

“Everything’s good?” Asked Elliot.

“Yes yes everything’s great. Right babe?” answered Andy and I tried to fake a smile.

“That’s better!” Elliot was teasing on us now.

I shook my shoulder but it just made Andy tighten his arm around me. Elliot led us to the back of his house and there was a black door at the end of the corridor. We entered it, and it was some kind of lounge but it was way cooler than any room I’ve seen. There were also band equipment and a billiard table at the center of the room. The wall was painted clear white and some posters were hanging on the wall.

“What is this place?” I talk to myself but Andy heard me.

“The boys use this place to hang out when they came to Japan. It’s like a base camp for them,” he explained.

“The boys? What boys?”

“My buddy and Andy’s bros,” he said and I still not understand what he meant. "Anyway man, what brings you here to Japan?" Asked Elliot as he poured a drink to three tall glasses.

"Well that shit happens, man!" Answered Andy as he lay down onto the couch.

"It's finally happened?" Replied Elliot as he brought us the drinks and gave it to Andy and I.

"What do you mean it's finally happened?" I asked looking at Andy. "Do you committed this fraud like several times before this!?" I glared at him.

"Fraud? What do you mean fraud?" Asked Elliot and he kept looking back and forth between Andy and I.

"He robbed someone and now runaway with his million dollars of money!" I shouted.

"You?" Elliot's eyes widened. "Andy what is she talking about? What does she means by stealing money?"

"Yes he does steal someone's money! He said it to me!"

"Stealing money will be the last thing he did. Don't you know that he's a mill..."

"Wow Elliot!" Andy cut him. "Listen man I'll explain it to you later. She... She uhm... She doesn't know," answered Andy.

"W-what? Why don't you tell your girlfriend?" Asked Elliot blankly.

"I'm not his girlfriend and oh! And he kidnap me!" I added. Andy turned around to see me and he couldn't believe I just spilled out his secret.

"Ok ok enough!" Andy shut me out. "Can we talk in private man?" He asked Elliot and he nodded. "And can you ask Yuga to lend her some clothes?"

“Oh yeah sure. Yuga! Yuga dear, could you come here and do me a favor?”

Elliot called someone and suddenly I realized there was someone beside the three of us in the room. She sat behind a desk and busy with her computer. That girl named Yuga got up and walked toward us. That pretty Japanese girl with long black hair smiled at us. Yuga took a seat beside Elliot who quickly embraced his arm around Yuga’s waist.

“Babe, could you please accompany ehm... Sorry what’s your name again?” My thoughts suddenly lost when Elliot asked me but then again I didn’t answer him.

“Kelsey. Her name is Kelsey,” said Andy after he sipped his drink. I glared at him but he just shrugged and acting like he didn’t do anything that annoyed me.

“I’ll leave you with her, ok?” told Elliot. “Come Andy, we go to the next room,” said Elliot as both of them walked and entered the room next door.

“Hi!” the pretty girl greeted me. “I’m Yuga, Elliot’s girlfriend,” she introduced herself.

“I’m Kelsey,” I replied her.

“I think you should change your outfit. Wet clothes will make you catch cold. You can use my clothes,” offered her.

“N-no it’s okay. It’ll dry in any minute. I don’t want to bothering you guys,” I answered not feeling ok with her hospitality.

“It’s okay. Andy’s friend is our friend,” she smiled. “Come on!” She then took me to her bedroom and gave me a t-shirt and jeans that surprisingly fit me. “The bathroom is over there,” she pointed to a door. “You can get change there,” she smiled again.

“T-thank you,” I said. I took my time inside the bathroom, sitting in the toilet thinking about everything I’ve just experienced. I sighed and one of my foot started to shake again and again, not realized I was inside the bathroom way too long until Yuga knocked on the door.

“Everything’s alright? You need help?” She asked.

“N-no I’m fine. Sorry. I’ll be out in a minute,” I answered. I quickly get changed and dried my hair with a clean towel I found inside a cupboard under the sink. I walked out from the bathroom and walked back to the lounge where I found Yuga was behind the kitchen counter making something.

“You can put your clothes to the dryer over there,” she glanced at a dryer next to a refrigerator. I smiled and tossed my clothes inside.

“Thanks for everything,” I said as I sat on a chair in the kitchen.

“It’s fine!”

“Is there anything I can help?” I got up from my chair and walked toward her.

“No, you just sit and dinner will be ready in half an hour. You’re my guest, beside do you know how to cook Japanese?” She smirked and shook my head.

I walked around the room, checking some pictures on the table. I could see a lot of pictures of her and her boyfriend Elliot, traveling from one place to another place in Japan. Then I saw Elliot and some guys at a concert. I brought my face closer to that photo to see it clearly.

“That’s him,” suddenly Yuga stood behind me. “He is in the band called blessthefall.”

“How did you know him?” I asked.

“I met him when his band had a concert here in Tokyo,” she answered.

I nodded several times while I kept looking at the pictures and suddenly I saw Andy’s pictures. “Is that Andy?” I pointed my finger to one of the pictures.

“Oh yeah, that’s Andrew and his friends. He’s in the band too, called We Came As Romans. Don’t you know that?”

I shook my head. How could I know about him while I just knew him yesterday? Andy didn’t talk much to me but he looked bubbly at that picture, made me chuckled a little.

“So what’s with you and Andy?” Now she asked me.

“Well he uhm…” I was about to say kidnap but actually I was willingly gone with him after the men tried to shoot at us. “I just know him and now he brings me into this terrible trouble.”

Yuga laughed a little, “there must be a reason why he drags you into his trouble. As far I know he never wants to bothered his friends.”

“Maybe because I’m not his friend, that’s why he doesn’t feel bad for me.”

“I don’t mean that actually,” Yuga laughed a little again as she walked to the couch and she picked up a little dog that came from nowhere and placed it on her lap. “This is Ichiro,” she told me as she raised her dog’s front paw. “Here have a sit. You’re not going to stand there forever, eh?”

This time I could just leave this place; tricked her and ran away from this trouble but I didn’t know why my feet brought me closer to her and I sat next to her.

“Andy never bring any girl before, you know. He must like you a lot,” teased Yuga.

“Oh no I’m sure it’s not the reason. He’s responsible for dragging me into his situation and he has nowhere to go. So he decided to go to your place along with me.”

“You really are defensive, ha?” She smirked and making me frowned. “Andy is a good guy. You just need to get to know him better.”

“Get to know a con man? Nah ah, I think I’ll pass!”

She was about to speak when suddenly Andy and Elliot rushed back to the room. “They find out about you guys. You both should leave, they know you’re here!” said Elliot. “Grab anything you can and take my car!” Elliot went to a drawer nearby and gave a car key to Andy.

I got up from my seat, panic, and didn’t know what to do besides standing there while everyone was busy with their own stuffs. “Take this!” Yuga tossed me my backpack, “I packed you some clean clothes.”

“Hurry up, you don’t have time!” Shouted Elliot and a second later we heard a loud bang on the front door. “Quickly!”

“Come on Kels!” Andy grabbed my wrist and he took me to the garage following Elliot.

“Be careful!” shouted Yuga before she closed the door behind us.

“W-wait what about her?” I stuttered worrying about her life.

“She’s a smart girl. She will hold them back for a while,” answered Elliot.

The three of us rushed to the garage and there was a beautiful black Pontiac Trans Am in there. Andy unlocked the door and went to the driver’s seat while Elliot opened the passenger door and gave me a signed to get in. I jumped inside and buckled myself with the seatbelt.

“El, I don’t know how I’ll repay you for this,” said Andy before he got inside the car.

“You’ll have time for that. Now go!” Shouted Elliot. “Good luck buddy!” Andy quickly started the engine and we drove out from the garage.