If Jealousy Could Kill

“You must be Rina.”

The young brunette turned around suddenly, noticing that a slightly older looking black haired woman had come up behind her now. Rina gulped, the nervousness beginning to set in her body. She always got nervous on dates before but now, knowing what her stakes were for it, it made Rina even more nervous. She didn’t know if she could go through with this.

“That’s me, who are you?” Rina asked. The woman laughed softly at her question, giving her a sweet smile.

“You’re kind of cute, you know that? My name is Miyuki Mori; I’m the friend that Mami wanted you to meet.”

“Oh… Oh!” Rina exclaimed when she had realized it. Of course this was Mami’s friend, what other stranger would be walking up to her at this time of night? She should have realized that one right away. “It’s nice to meet you, Miyuki. I’m Rina Suzuki.”

“Such a pretty name for a pretty girl,” Miyuki complimented. Rina could feel her face beginning to heat up and she knew that Miyuki’s sudden compliment was making her blush. Compliments always did that to her, it was just another one of Rina’s habits.

“T-thank you… But, how did you know it was me?” The thought had only just occurred to Rina. Mami hadn’t told Rina what Miyuki looked like and, as far as she knew, she also didn’t tell Miyuki what Rina looked like. In a response to her question, she heard Miyuki laugh softly again.

“Mami pointed you out.”

“She…pointed me out? Is she here?” Rina asked in curiosity. That didn’t make any sense, why would Mami be here? Rina watched as Miyuki got a smile on her face, one that looked so similar to the smile Haruna would get whenever she started to mess with people.

“She’s back there somewhere,” Miyuki answered, pointing in the direction that she had come from. “She’s probably hiding so she can watch our date.”

“That does sound like her,” Rina said with a laugh. Miyuki smiled at Rina’s laugh, she was so cute when she was this happy. Miyuki wasn’t too excited about being set up on a date by Mami but now that she had met Rina, she didn’t feel like that anymore. Rina seemed like a sweet girl and she was pretty cute, so Miyuki didn’t mind taking this girl on a date. Mami had actually made a good choice this time.

“Why don’t I take you to dinner, Rina? I think it could be a good start, we could get to know each other a little more,” Miyuki suggested. Rina nodded to her suggestion. She liked that idea. Even if she wasn’t planning on letting this go anywhere but casual dating, Miyuki did seem like a nice person and Rina would like to get to know her better.

“I’d like that,” Rina responded. Miyuki gave her a smile, extending her hand out to the younger girl in front of her. Rina was hesitant at first but not wanting to make things too awkward, she reached out and grabbed Miyuki’s hand. She could feel the way their hands entwined together, the older girl giving Rina’s hand a tight squeeze. It felt weird to Rina to be holding this woman’s hand like this.

“I think you’ll really like this place,” Miyuki told her. Rina nodded, allowing Miyuki to lead the way to whichever restaurant she had planned to take them to.

***

Sitting at a table just a little ways away from the new couple was Mami, her eyes trained onto them. When Mami had first mentioned this plan to Rina, staying around and observing the date wasn’t part of that plan. But after Rina had so suddenly changed her mind, Mami was more curious than ever now.

It wasn’t like Rina to just up and change her mind like that so Mami knew there had to be something else that Rina wasn’t telling her. Following her and watching their date would probably be the only way Mami could find that out though. So that’s exactly what she was doing.

“Hey, Mami!”

The blonde jumped in her seat, breaking her contact with the couple to whirl around, glaring at her co-worker who had snuck up on her. Mami didn’t want to invite him seeing as he was one of her more annoying co-workers, but she had no choice.

Mami knew which place Miyuki was thinking of taking Rina to and it wasn’t a place that someone went to alone. She’d completely stick out if she went there alone. Mami needed to find someone to pass off as a date and this guy was about the only one she could think of. If she asked anyone else, she knew they’d interrogate her about why she was following her friend’s date. While there was a risk of this guy asking questions, Mami knew he was easy enough to trick. She just hoped that he would avoid the questions altogether so she wouldn’t have to bother.

“Don’t sneak up on me like that,” Mami growled to him. She turned back around in her seat, going back to observing the couple. Mami was sitting far enough away that she couldn’t actually hear what the two were saying but she could see their actions and expressions clearly. Both of them looked pretty happy, everything was going well so far. Mami just hoped that it would stay that way.

“Sorry, sorry,” she heard her co-worker apologize. From the corner of her eye, she could see him sit down next to her, leaning his arms on the table. “So why are we staking out your friend’s date? You never explained that to me.”

“I can’t explain it; I just need to do this. Take that for an answer,” Mami said, almost absentmindedly. Her attention was too focused on the couple to bother looking at her co-worker.

“Remind me again why I’m here? Why can’t you do it alone?”

“Goddamn it, Kenta,” Mami cursed lowly. She had really been hoping that he would just not bother to ask her any questions, but it looked like she would have to put up with them for the night. “I need a date for tonight; it would be too suspicious of me to go alone.”

“Aw, Mami! I’m very glad happy to accompany you on a date,” Kenta said slyly. Mami rolled her eyes but her body tensed when she felt Kenta snake an arm around her shoulders. She broke contact with the couple long enough to shoot Kenta a glare, the male taking his arm away from Mami when he saw the glare. Mami really was a scary person when she wanted to be.

“It’s a fake date; don’t get your hopes up.”

“Well someone woke up on the wrong side of the bed today,” Kenta said. Mami blew out a huff of air, leaning forward onto the table. So maybe she was a bit harsh on him but she was only worried, she truly wasn’t meaning to be so mean with him. She just worried about what Rina’s motive for this could be and how it would affect the others. Sometimes when she was this worried, her worry didn’t exactly translate into the best phrases.

She didn’t think Rina could have that bad of a motive but knowing how upset she had been the last few days, Mami was worried that Rina wasn’t quite thinking right. Mami was just glad that the brunette was out on a date with her friend and not a complete strange. It made her feel a little safer that she knew Miyuki wouldn’t harm Rina.

Mami was once again snapped out of her thoughts when she saw Miyuki take Rina’s hand, the two girls beginning to walk away. She jumped up from the seat, grabbing onto Kenta’s wrist and pulling her co-worker along with her.

“Where are we going?” Kenta asked as he got drug along.

“They’re leaving, we’re following,” the blonde stated simply. Kenta sighed softly but didn’t try to fight her. He didn’t even know why he was doing this for her; the two of them weren’t even close. They just worked together. It was just that when she asked him to accompany her, he could hear the desperation in her tone. It wasn’t every day that you heard Mami sound like that, so Kenta agreed to help her. He couldn’t just let Mami do this alone when she sounded like that.

He just hoped this wouldn’t end as badly as some of her other schemes have ended.

***

“This place is so pretty,” Rina said in awe. Her eyes looked up at the ceiling, taking in everything that she saw. She was particularly mesmerized by the large crystal glass chandelier in the center of the ceiling. She couldn’t remember the last time someone had taken her to what appeared to be such an elegant restaurant. Then again, she couldn’t really remember the last time she was on a proper date with anyone like this.

Rina looked over at Miyuki now, the older girl smiling at her. The two of them weaved through the tables of the restaurant, following the server to wherever he was taking them. So far, Rina didn’t really mind this. The nervousness was slowly going away the more time she spent with Miyuki; she was becoming more comfortable around this woman.

This girl was really nice and caring so far. In a way, it reminded her of Haruna. Miyuki even kind of looked a bit like Haruna when she was younger, the resemblance was striking. Maybe that was why Mami wanted them to meet? It didn’t make sense if Mami wanted to take Rina’s mind off of Haruna, but Mami did a lot of things that didn’t make sense to most people.

When the girls were led to the table, Miyuki and Rina sat on opposite sides of the table, Rina’s eyes glancing around at her surroundings as she settled down. Given all the couples that sat around them at the individual tables, Rina guessed this was a pretty popular dating place. Eventually, her eyes laid back on Miyuki, the older woman continuing to stare at her.

“Tell me about yourself,” Miyuki said, catching Rina a bit off guard. The younger brunette jumped a bit, coughing nervously. She hated questions like that; she never knew what to say. Everyone always wanted to know different things when they asked those sorts of questions.

“I-I don’t know where to begin with that,” Rina said softly. She could hear Miyuki laughing softly.

“That’s fine. What do you do for a living?”

“Oh. Well I work at a bakery right now, but I’m going to school as well and I’m almost done with that,” Rina answered. The hands that laid on her lap gripped the black skirt she was wearing tightly, her fingernails digging into the soft material of it. The nervousness was beginning to set in again now that the two of them were talking like this. Rina never was good at talking too much about herself in situations like this one. Miyuki was still practically a stranger to her.

“What are you going to school for?”

“Music production. I think it could be really neat to help produce it someday and music has always been something I’ve been interested in.”

“That’s a pretty interesting thing for someone like you to be interested in. Do you play any instruments?” All of the interest Miyuki seemed to be taking in Rina made her a bit uncomfortable; she wasn’t used to being put on the spot like this. But she supposed that is what happened during dates, she would need to get used to it if she was going to go through with her plan. She’d just have to suck it up if she wanted to get Haruna back.

“I play a few. I know the piano and the keyboard. I play a little bit of the drums but I don’t think I’m very good.”

“I’m sure that’s not true, Rina. I think you’re probably a very talented woman,” Miyuki complimented her. Rina could feel the heat rising in her again. Miyuki really was being so sweet; Rina was beginning to feel a bit guilty for this. It’s true that Miyuki was a sweet girl, but she didn’t interest Rina. There was only one person who interested Rina but after meeting this woman, Rina wasn’t sure if she could use someone like her to get Haruna back. It just felt so wrong to use someone who was so kind for this sort of thing.

“What do you do for a living? Are you in school as well?” Rina asked. She was doing her best to change the subject away from herself; she did kind of want to get to know Miyuki a little bit more as well.

“No, I’m not in school. I graduated a few months ago actually. I majored in business.” Miyuki’s answer was curious to Rina. She could remember that Mami said this girl was someone who worked with her but if Miyuki had graduated from university, why would she still be working at such a small shop?

“Um… Miyuki, if I can ask, do you work with Mami?” Rina asked her softly. Miyuki let out a small chuckle, shaking her head.

“I guess you could say that. My parents own the shop she works at and I help from time to time,” Miyuki explained herself. Rina could only nod in response to Miyuki’s words. So that’s what Mami had meant.

Rina’s mind was wandering off again as the two girls let the silence creep into their conversation. Her mind was wandering back to thinking about Haruna instead of focusing on her date. Rina couldn’t help it, this woman in front of her just reminded her so much of Haruna. From her looks to the way she acted, it was all so much like Haruna. Rina didn’t realize how deeply she’d been thinking about it until she found herself sighing softly.

“Is something wrong, Rina?” Miyuki asked, having noticed the very audible sigh her date had let out. She saw Rina’s eyes dart up to her, the girl’s body tensing up a bit. “You’re not enjoying this, are you?”

“N-no! That’s not it at all,” Rina said. She could see the way she had accidentally hurt Miyuki’s feelings. She really didn’t mean to and now that she had, she couldn’t get rid of the new guilt that was now mixing with the nervousness she still felt. Miyuki gave her a small smile, sitting back in the chair.

“You can tell me if you’re not, you know. I won’t mind it; honesty is the best policy they say.” Rina giggled softly at Miyuki’s words. Just like Haruna in every way.

“I’m sorry, Miyuki. It’s really not you. It’s just… You remind me of someone is all,” Rina said, doing her best to cover herself.

“Let me guess, this someone is the reason you’re here right now, isn’t she?” Rina’s eyes widened as she heard Miyuki’s words. She was good. But how did she know that? Rina didn’t think she was so easy to read that even a near stranger could see through her.

“I guess you could say that she is.”

“Is she your ex?”

“Not exactly…” Rina murmured. She didn’t exactly know how to describe what was going on between her and Haruna. So many people would never understand it and she wasn’t sure if Miyuki would be able to understand it.

“What is it then?”

“I don’t know how to explain it,” Rina answered honestly. “It’s just that she used to show me so much love but lately, it feels like she’s been pushing me away.”

Miyuki gave Rina a sad smile. She understood Rina’s situation perfectly. She knew that feeling all too well, she could definitely sympathize with Rina for what she was having to go through because of this girl she spoke of. Miyuki could see that Rina wasn’t enjoying their date and she could see Rina probably never would. But she still wanted to help Rina. Even if she couldn’t make Rina happy herself, she still found herself wanting to help her be happy in some other way.

“Let me help you get her back,” Miyuki stated. She saw Rina’s eyes widen again and her breathing becoming visibly short. She knew her words had shocked Rina; it was probably the last thing she expected her to say. After all, not many people would want to help their date get with another person.

“H-how would you do that?”

“You said that I made you think of this woman, didn’t you? If she really is anything like me then she’s prone to jealousy.”

Rina felt herself bite down on her lip, her hands regaining their grip on her skirt again. This was going in a direction Rina never thought possible. The entire point of all of this had been to make Haruna jealous, but she never thought she’d hear those words come out of her date’s mouth. She never thought any of her dates would ever find out, especially not this quickly. And if they did, the last thing she expected them to do was offer to help her.

“What are you thinking of doing?” Rina squeaked out softly. She let her head bow, her eyes training on the hands that were wrapped up tightly in her flowing skirt. Rina didn’t know why she was bothering to ask. It’s not like she could really ask her date to do that for her…. Could she?

“Pretend to be my girlfriend.”

That got Rina’s attention. The brunette’s head snapped up, her bite on her lip getting harder as she did so. Her mind was replaying the words she had just heard; she had to make sure she had heard that right.

“You would be okay with that?”

“Of course. Rina, you’re a very cute and sweet girl, but I can see that you’re not into me. You deserve someone who will make you happy and I want to help you get that person back. If we pretend to be with each other around her, she’ll be begging for you to take her back in no time. You just have to make her see what she’s letting go of.”

Rina was speechless. Miyuki really was a unique person. If Rina agreed to let Miyuki help her with this, it could save the young brunette a lot of guilt and hardships. It would probably speed up the process of making Haruna jealous by a lot as well. It all seemed to play in Rina’s favor.

“What do you say, Rina? No one has to know. Once she comes back to you, we can go to being friends and no one ever has to figure out what we did. It’ll be our little secret.”

Rina smiled as the guilt and nervousness once again began to slowly disappear from her body.. Miyuki’s words had made her really happy. This had all happened so fast, but Rina didn’t mind it. The quicker she got through this, the quicker she got Haruna back.. Getting Haruna’s love back would be a lot easier if she had some help. With those last thoughts, Rina finally answered Miyuki.

“I like your idea.”