Sukeban

“You better have a good reason for being here so early,” Omar grumbled tiredly at his friend. Katashi gave a loud laugh, shaking his head before walking past Omar.

“Your old age is catching up to you, I’ve never seen you so tired at 7 am,” Katashi commented. He could hear Omar snort from behind him before the closing sound of a door followed. A small smile came to Katashi’s face as the two males made their way into Omar’s living room, both taking a seat on the couch.

“What is it that you came to tell me, Katashi?” Omar asked him. Katashi coughed lightly before bringing his bag closer to him. He began to dig through the small bag before pulling out one folder, following it with another. He sat both of them onto the couch cushion that separated Katashi and Omar.

“These are the files I collected on the girls. I worked through the night, knowing how important this was for you. I’m afraid I may not be giving you everything you had hoped for though.”

“At this point, anything you can offer me would be fine,” Omar confirmed. Katashi nodded, picking up the first folder he had pulled out. He flipped it open before thumbing through the contents, taking out a single paper when he found it.

“This is Haruna Ono’s basic information, it does include her address. She lives here in Tokyo and lives with her parents still. I found records of her in a local high school, the same one I found records of Suzuki in as well. I could not, however, find any reports of abuse coming from the address. Either your informant wasn’t very truthful or the abuse was never reported before.”

“That will be enough for her; I’ll take it from here…”

“There is another thing,” Katashi interrupted quickly. He pulled out two more sets of papers, handing them to Omar. “Ono has quite the record at her school. I managed to crack the code and take a peek.” Omar glowered at his friend for his words.

“I didn’t tell you to do that.”

“I know, but I wanted to… And I’m glad I did. Omar, this girl is trouble. She has a massive record of violence and suspensions from her school. So much that the school is considering expulsion as a punishment for her, and I’m sure you know how serious that is in Japanese schools.”

“I know,” Omar said with a sigh. He shook his head; he could worry about Haruna’s record later. “What did you find on Rina?” Omar asked. Katashi sighed softly, flipping Haruna’s file closed and pulling the second one on top. He ran a hand through his hair as he opened it, pulling out a paper similar to the one he had just given Omar.

“Suzuki puzzles me.”

“What is that supposed to mean?”

“It means that I had trouble tracking her whereabouts down, but not because of her last name. I found records of her and found who her parents are. Thing is, her parents don’t appear to be living in Tokyo. Their names are registered to an address in Osaka, says they moved there about three months ago. I have no idea where Suzuki is at in Tokyo right now… Or if she’s even still here. This girl, when you met her, did she seem close to Ono?”

“She was very close to Haruna,” Omar confirmed. “It doesn’t make sense that her parents would be all the way in Osaka…”

“There are a few ways this could happen,” Katashi interjected. “Suzuki could have been allowed by her parents to stay here for school. However, given her age, they would have had to put the apartment in their name or in a relatives’ name. There was nothing connected to her parents so it would need to be a relative. Suzuki is too much of a common last name though and Tokyo is a huge city, there is no way for me to know which residences under the Suzuki name could possibly be related to this one.”

“Is there any other ways you have in mind?”

“Runaway.” Omar looked over at Katashi with a shocked expression. His friend could only sigh, looking away from Omar. “It’s common, isn’t it? Kids run away from their parents for everything these days; it’s possible Suzuki was one of them. We can’t be sure though.”

“Those are two suggestions…” Omar stated thoughtfully.

“Do you have any ideas for it?” Katashi asked him. Omar leaned back into the couch, his eyes staring at the papers that he held in his hands now. Where could Rina be? There were many possibilities for Rina but Omar knew that the two most likely possibilities had already been mentioned by Katashi. Omar knew there was one more likely one, although he’d rather not think of it.

“There’s one more idea I have,” Omar said with a dejected sigh. “Domestic violence would be a possibility, would it not?”

“What do you mean?” Katashi asked him curiously. Omar coughed lowly, his eyes scanning the paper that held Haruna’s school record. When he had first met her, he didn’t think she was capable of such a heinous thing but after reading this paper, he had to admit it was a possibility.

“We can’t rule out any possibilities with such little evidence,” Omar began. “When I told you Haruna and Rina were close, I didn’t tell you how close. They’re dating and it is possible that Rina was forced away from her home by Haruna. Haruna is much older than her and has a record of violence. Given her record, I would say she’s got a short temper as well. When I met her, she did appear to be very controlling over Rina, to the point where she seemed to not want Rina to speak to me. I thought she was simply being protective at but maybe I was wrong.”

“But Omar, if Suzuki was in an abusive relationship with Ono, why would she call you and tell you that Ono was the one being abused by her family?”

“Reverse psychology. It’s not exactly what you could call reverse psychology of course but it’s pretty damn close. Rina could tell us this to make us go search Haruna’s house where we could very well find evidence of her abusing Rina. The last time I saw Rina, I could see remnants of flesh wounds on her face. They were faded but they were there; they were a clear sign that someone had injured her face.”

“That doesn’t match up with an abuser’s profile though. Abusers are notorious for their smart ways. If Ono was doing this, would she really have hit Rina in such an obvious spot? It wouldn’t match up with what is common among domestic abusers,” Katashi countered him. Omar let out a heavy sigh, setting the papers back down onto the couch.

“Just because something isn’t common doesn’t mean it can’t happen,” Omar said. “When you looked at Haruna’s school record, did you happen to get Rina’s as well?”

“I’m afraid not; I didn’t have the opportunity to. I apologize, Omar.” The older male nodded his head, feeling a sad emotion swirling in him. There were too many possibilities to go on with Rina that he couldn’t pin one down, and he really didn’t want to believe Haruna could be hurting her. “What are you planning to do now?” Katashi spoke up after seconds of silence.

“Don’t worry about that, you can leave the rest to me.”

***

Tomomi sucked in a deep breath as she made her way down the hallways of the school. Her school bag was clutched tightly against her chest and she made sure to keep her head down as well as her eyes. She didn't find the idea of making eye contact with anyone very desirable right now. She knew how many of them probably felt about her now.

It wasn't hard to know that either. As she made her way down the hallway, Tomomi could hear the whispers that followed her. Without looking up, she knew the gossipers were probably also staring at the student they once saw as good and innocent. She was doing her best to ignore it but as the whispering continued, it got harder to ignore. She couldn't help but wonder what they were saying about what had happened... What they were saying about her.

A small whimper left her lips and she slowly let her eyes lift only barely. She glanced at the people surrounding her, cringing every time she caught someone's scared or angered look. Everyone hated her now; she knew they did. Just as Tomomi was about to dart her eyes back down again, she spotted a familiar short haired student not too far from where she was now.

"Mao!" Tomomi shouted impulsively. At that moment, the brunette had lost all conscious thought of the students around her and could only focus on the black haired student in front of her.

At first, Tomomi questioned if Mao had heard her shout or not but when the teenager did turn around, Tomomi knew she had heard. She smiled and began heading in Mao's direction. Her footsteps were stopped instantly when she saw Mao scoff and look away from her again. A pang of hurt soared through her and she considered turning back... But if she did that, would it further damage her friendship with Mao? Tomomi didn't want that. Mao had been her friend practically forever; she didn't want this coming in between them.

With a new sense of determination, Tomomi pushed herself forward. She dodged the other students coming towards her and dipped around them to where Mao was pushing textbooks into her locker. Even when Tomomi got closer to Mao, the teenager didn't address her or even acknowledge her.

"Mao... Talk to me," Tomomi started weakly. She didn't know what else to say; she had no idea what Mao might be thinking about her or about what had happened. She knew Mao had to have known about her involvement with Haruna, everyone seemed to know now.

"If we talk, would it be the truth or just another lie?" Mao responded bitterly. Tomomi cringed from the harsh words combined with the way Mao shoved another book into the locker before forcefully closing it.

"I'm sorry I lied but I--"

"But you what?" Mao asked harshly as she whipped around to face Tomomi. The brunette was dumbstruck when she saw the hurt in Mao's angered expression. "Tomomi, you lied to me. You tricked me and you didn't trust me. After all we've been through."

"I didn't think you'd understand..."

"Because you never tried to get me to understand!" Mao interrupted her. The teenager huffed softly, shaking her head before she grabbed her bag and twirled around.

"Mao," Tomomi whimpered out softly. The teenager didn't respond before walking briskly down the hallway. The fragile brunette left behind bit down on her bottom lip before making the executive decision to follow Mao. She had hurt Mao and now it was up to her to make it right again. She had to be strong and fight for what she wanted... Just like they had taught her.

Tomomi set off in her pursuit, doing her best to keep up with Mao. She dodged through the throngs of people in the hallway, slipping past ones who stared at her and ones who gossiped. She caught a small glimpse of what people said, all of it what she had at least expected. Everyone talked about her involvement with the most notorious gang at the school. It was then that she knew Hana had definitely kept her word and spread it around the school.

The brunette didn't know how long she had been following Mao for, although she knew it couldn't have been for more than a few minutes. Before she knew it, the two teenagers had found themselves in a more deserted area of the school, only a few students walking down the hallway with them. Abruptly, Mao had stopped, turning around quickly again to glare at Tomomi.

"Why are you following me?"

"I want to talk," Tomomi responded hesitantly. "I want to explain things." Mao scoffed and rolled her eyes but stood her ground.

"Then explain, and do it before the bell rings." Tomomi nodded and looked down at the floor. She had seen the usually reserved Mao use this tone before but Mao had never used it on Tomomi. Tomomi had never made her angry enough... Not until now that is. "Why did you get involved with Haruna?"

"It's complicated..." Tomomi paused, seeing the still upset look on Mao's face. She sighed softly and decided to continue. "You know how it is with me. Everyone pushes me around and takes me for advantage. I'm always the weak one who is never able to say no to anyone."

"Tomomi..." Mao murmured, her expression softening.

"I thought Haruna and the others could help me with that. They're the strongest people in the school; they never let anyone push them around. I was just... I was just tired of being the weak one everyone used and abused." Tomomi hung her head, a sense of guilt washing over her. That's how it started but Tomomi knew she had different motives for staying now, but she couldn't admit those aloud.

"Why didn't you ever tell me this? Why did you find the need to lie to me?"

"I didn't know if you'd understand and you dislike Haruna that I just thought you'd be mad..."

"Tomomi," Mao interrupted, "I am hurt you're siding with someone like them but... I'm more hurt that you lied to me and didn't trust me. We've been through everything together and you didn't trust me."

"I'm sorry, I should have trusted you and I know it was wrong not to." Tomomi paused for a breath, trying to steady her tone that was growing shaky. "I explained myself so... Would you explain why you’re hanging around Hana?"

"What does that have to do with this?" Mao asked, taking a step back from Tomomi. The brunette hung her head again, nervously playing with the strap of her bag. Mao wasn’t going to like this; she already knew Mao wouldn’t.

"Hana has so much to do with this," Tomomi murmured. She raised her head, looking around the hallway. The brunette took a deep breath before bringing one hand to lift her shirt slightly. She could hear Mao gasp when she saw the markings and Tomomi winced. "I know you heard about the fight that got me suspended... This is what Hana did to me."

"Why did she do that?" Mao said in a whispered tone. Tomomi let her shirt fall back into place, moving her hand back to the bag's handle. Tomomi didn't know how Mao would handle this but she knew she had to tell her; she had to do something to get Mao away from Hana.

“She tried to blackmail me…. Because of you.” Tomomi whispered the last part of her sentence, her eyes darting away from Mao. At this point, would Mao even believe her or would she insist Tomomi was lying? That was one of Tomomi’s biggest fears.

“B-blackmail?” Mao squeaked out in surprise. She took another step back, shaking her head in disbelief. Tomomi could very well be lying… Couldn’t she? She had lied about her involvement with Haruna but… She didn’t seem to be lying and Mao didn’t want to believe she could be.

“Please believe me, Mao. When you took me to the karaoke bar, she was lying when she acted like she had never known me. We had met once before that. Do you remember the time Mami and Rina got in trouble for fighting with Hana?”

“Yes…”

“That was the first time I met her. I walked in on them and if Mami hadn’t come, Hana would have come after me as well. Mami didn’t start that fight, it was Hana. It’s always been Hana.” Tomomi could hear how desperate her tone was getting and she couldn’t deny that she was desperate. This was her last chance to make Mao believe her; it was her last chance to get her friendship with her best friend back.

“Tell me why she blackmailed you,” Mao said in a shaky tone.

“Hana told me that you were the one who told her about Rina’s secrets.” Tomomi paused, seeing the sheer terror cross Mao’s face. “She told me that if I didn’t want Haruna to know what you did, I had to do what she said…”

“And you told her no?” Tomomi hated the hurt tone that crossed Mao’s words; she didn’t want to keep hurting Mao but she knew her friend had to hear it.

“I did. I told her no. I couldn’t help her; I would never be able to live with myself if I helped someone like Hana…”

“But you can help someone like Haruna?” Mao bit out bitterly, interrupting Tomomi’s sentence. The brunette opened her mouth to respond but she found herself with a lack of words. “If what you say is true, then aren’t Haruna and Hana the same? Wouldn’t that mean they both take advantage of people and hurt them? Answer me how Haruna is any different… Answer me how any of them are any different!”

“Please stop shouting,” Tomomi begged her with the same desperation clear in her tone. Mao sighed softly, looking away from Tomomi and silently waiting for her friend to continue. “I know it seems like they’re not any different but they are. They’re just misunderstood; they’re not bad people.”

“Not bad people? Are you blind, Tomomi? Look at what they do! They beat on innocent people for no reason. They steal, they cheat, and they lie. They are the definition of bad people.”

“But they have a reason!” Tomomi blurted out before she could think about it. Instantly after saying it, the brunette wanted to slap her hands over her mouth and beg Mao to just forget what she had said. She knew Mao wasn’t going to do that.

“What reason could they have to act like they do?” Mao asked. Tomomi wanted to cringe from the question even if she knew it was coming.

“I can’t… I can’t tell you,” she murmured weakly in response. Mao scoffed, turning her head away from Tomomi and rolling her eyes.

“We’re going back to this? I thought you wanted to fix things, Tomomi.”

“I do!” she responded instantly in a loud tone, snapping Mao’s attention back to you. “But things are complicated. There are things I can’t tell you but if you come meet them…”

“I don’t want to meet them,” Mao fought back, interrupting Mao mid-sentence. Tomomi let out a frustrated sigh on impulse, running a hand through her hair. There were times when Tomomi really disliked how stubborn Mao could be.

“Please, Mao, just one meeting. Just one talk with all of them. If we all talk this out them we can fix it..."

"Do they know?"

"W-what?" Tomomi squeaked out at Mao's sudden question.

"Do they know it was me?" Mao asked in a soft tone. Tomomi whimpered softly, her hands beginning to pick at the strap of her bag.

"They do," she said in barely a whispered. Mao could feel a sense of terror and dread wrap around her entire form when she heard Tomomi’s words.. "I told them. I thought it would make them understand more if they heard it from me and not Hana."

"Did they?" Mao asked her question with hesitance, not sure of what to make of Tomomi's latest confession.

"They will if you talk to them. Even Haruna has agreed to it. Just come with me, I swear that nothing bad will happen to you." Tomomi's words fell off, her eyes looking pleadingly at Mao. That was all she had left. If Mao didn't accept this plea from her then Tomomi didn't know what else to do.

A silence fell between the girls and last for what felt like Tomomi to be forever. Eventually, Mao sighed and broke the silence. She hung her head, letting her short locks fall into her face a bit. What did she do? There was a chance Tomomi was tricking her but.... This was Tomomi. Would she really do that? Mao didn't want to think that Tomomi would ever trick her or anyone else like this.

"All right, I'll come see them."