Chapter 35

The spa day proceeded in classic fashion. A soak, a massage, face masks...various other, more exotic activities that weren't very relaxing at all. Acupuncture was a new experience for him. He'd had it done before, of course, but in a world like this one it was a bit different. He could truly feel his chakras paths flowing, or whatever the fuck acupuncture was supposed to do here. Anyway, it felt good.

Night came, and Akari and her sister decided they'd stay until the next day so they can attend some scheduled event the resort had planned. Meanwhile, Aiden had drifted off to a nearby bar wearing the same blue coat and kimono zori he'd arrived in previously.

Akari found him at around midnight. She hadn't been able to sleep and had instead chosen to wander the resort. Aiden felt the presence at his side and swallowed the contents of his glass in one shot.

Akari smelled the alcohol on him. "What are you doing here so late?" She asked after a moment of hesitation, having mustered all her courage to talk to him.

Aiden gave her a sideways glance. "Second to last seat, red robes."

Akari looked at the front bar. Near the end of it was a woman dressed in an ornate red kimono with a thick head of hair and phoenix-like eyes. She smoked from an equally luxurious kiseru while the bartender bought her a drink. She had an indifferent, almost enigmatic look to her. She seemed lonely, perhaps even pensive, as she sat there perched atop the stool with one leg over the other, her clothing pulling apart and revealing a milky-white thigh.

Not surprisingly, she attracted gazes from every male present. Unfortunately, that included Aiden's.

Aiden went on."She's like your mother. A widow."

The statement caused Akari to blink, forgetting her fear of him. "What? How can you tell?"

"Right hand, ring finger."

Akari stifled a yawn and looked. She saw an exquisite diamond ring on the woman. She was amazed he saw that from way over here. "That proves she's married, not that--"

"She wears it because she loved him. Still does," Aiden interrupted her calmly. "This place may be where they met, or have special memories in. Her eyes keep drifting to the seat next to her, making her smile for a moment. She's requested a certain song three times over the course of her stay. It's playing now. Look at her face. Lost in memories."

Akari listened and watched. She saw the woman's lips pull up every now and then, her eyes dimming just for a moment or two at certain times. She appeared sad, and, indeed, lost in the past.

"She's lonely and missing him. That's where I come in."

Akari shook her head in wonder. "If all that's really true, why would you think she's in the mood for some one-night-stand?"

"Because that's why she's here, whether she knows it or not. I told you, she's lonely."

"And? That seems a bit scummy. You could've picked any other woman here, why her?"

Aiden shrugged. "She'll appreciate it more."

Akari, despite having somewhat expected the answer due to her intimate knowledge of him, still couldn't quite bring herself to understand his thinking.

Aiden saw her confusion and offered a small curve of the lip as he explained. "I can fuck any of the women here, sure, and they'll remember me as a good lay. But only she'll wake up the next day and remember me as the man who made her feel special again."

Akari had no words. It made a twisted kind of sense, she supposed, but...

"What about mother?" She asked quietly, unsure.

"She's not here right now. Otherwise, I'd have her instead." Or both, he added silently. It'd be a bit more difficult to convince the two, but it wasn't a challenge he was unfamiliar with. Besides, Akiko had already begun to entrust her body to him when it came to sex.

"I don't mean that!" Akari blushed. "I meant, aren't you and her already...you know..." She trailed off as he stared at her weirdly.

"Your mother and I are not a couple, kid." He told her slowly.

Akari fidgeted uneasily. 'Well, sure, but..." She likes you, she finished silently.

Aiden understood what she meant even if she didn't say it. "Our relationship is purely physical. It's an exchange of services, let's say." He lifted a brow at her. "Would you even like it if it were otherwise?" A teasing smile lit up his face. "Want to call me papa, do you?"

Akari balked. "Of course not!" She replied hotly. "But why do you have to sleep around when you already have my mom? It's not right!"

Aiden laughed. "Right? When have I ever given a fuck about being 'right' when it comes to sex?" He took another of the shot glasses at the table and downed it. "You should know the kind of person I am."

His tone was colored with annoyance.

Akari flinched from the edge in his voice.

"What does it matter?" He asked drily, not expecting an answer. "I'm probably going to die again soon anyway."

Akari frowned at that. Given Rumi's desolate face as she walked away, maybe that was the case. Still...

"You shouldn't say that," Akari folded her arms, suddenly feeling a chill. "You don't know that's going to happen."

Aiden scoffed. "Given how late it is, maybe I am wrong about there being a spell on me," He started bluntly because he was now willing to believe it based on that. "But you're a fool if you think Rumi won't tell her mother where I am or who I came with. She's a crazy bitch, but she can put two and two together. And when she does, all of us are fucked. Well, don't worry. I'll keep it from happening on my next run."

But one thing nagged at him. Given Naoko's personality, she would have been here long before now if she had a tracking spell on him now that he was out of Akiko's estate which blocked such spells. So, if we went with the assumption that her lack of presence meant there really is no spell on his person--which would also mean he owed quite a few apologies to some people--then how the fuck did she know where he was that day?

...Does she know that Senior Tang guy? It's the only explanation that he could think of. He would have thought of that sooner if he'd taken the chance and gone out of the estate before now, but he had no reason to suspect Tang so he just assumed the old man was wrong in his examination previously.

Instead, perhaps he'd told Naoko where Aiden was. This also may mean he knew Yuuji, whose body Aiden currently inhabited. It wouldn't be surprising. The boy was the heir of a prominent family. Tang knowing him wasn't strange, he supposed. Perhaps he also had a hand in Yuuji being taken care of as he had been. If he and Naoko were in on it together, then it made sense the old man would tell Naoko if he happened to meet 'Yuuji' during a house call.

So, didn't this mean Aiden was also safe to just travel as he wished? He didn't have to rely on Akiko, then.

Even if he did die again, it would be worth it now. He regretted being so damn paranoid and stressed about being killed that he didn't even think to experiment. Honestly, he doesn't have any excuse.

....Really, son? Is that really what you're going with? You know why you've been so careless and stupid. Let's not pretend you don't.

The voices were acting up again, it seems. It was his father's this time. He'd been hearing them more often lately.

"But still, your concern is heartwarming." He finished. Akari stared at him for a while. He hated that. She knew everything about him now. That was both a comfort and an unease. It was nice being able to talk to someone who understood his situation, but at the same time she knew every little regret, every mistake, he'd ever made. And even without those, she's scared of him for the things he'd done.

Even now, she was only barely controlling herself. Why she bothered now when she'd avoided him so much before, he didn't know.

"...Just get to your room soon." Akari looked away. "It's late. And apologize to Kanon tomorrow!" She told him firmly. "She's really upset over your little stunt today, you know." She waited for his response, but he only nodded vaguely without further comment. He rose from his seat and strode towards his intended target.

Akari watched him go with a touch of...she didn't know. Maybe he was right about Rumi telling her mother. Maybe Akari wouldn't wake up in the morning. Perhaps she was watching Aiden's final moments and he'd really end up murdered again, setting the day back.

...He could have died a thousand times between the last time she scanned his mind and now. It was a chilling thought.

I'd never know if that was the case. I could've also been killed countless times by now.

Or maybe that hadn't happened at all. Maybe it would somewhere down the line. Only Aiden would carry that burden. Akari?

She was too terrified to ever check. She didn't want to ever know what she looked like upon death. Didn't want to see her mother or sister being killed, mercilessly, by an angry Naoko. And being around Aiden only increased thoughts like these. Thoughts that maybe they'd all already been killed before. Slowly, painfully.

Sorry, mother....I don't think I can do what you asked.

Her aversion grew.