Magical Song, 3/3
MAGICAL SONG - PART THREE
The security guard at the set gave her a sad look the next day. "I'm sorry, I've been told not to let you through anymore."
She pulled her rainbow cloak tightly around her. Yuriko knew, she must have known that Becky had been in her apartment snooping around. "What do you mean? I've been here almost every day for two months. I'm Aiba-san's assistant."
"The order came from Aiba-san himself. Please leave without making a fuss."
She grabbed the man by the arm. "Please, what's changed? Have I done something wrong? Can I at least speak with Aiba-san's manager?"
The security guard sighed. "I really shouldn't..."
"I signed a contract," she insisted, "and they've given me no notice that they intended to break it. I'd like to speak with Matsumoto Jun, please. Or should I be speaking with my lawyer?"
Matsumoto was there within minutes. "Becky, I'm very sorry. Masaki thinks it's for the best. We'll pay the rest of your contract in full, I promise."
"He's getting married? I mean, isn't this ringing alarm bells? They barely know each other. I foresee this being an incredibly bad decision on Aiba-san's part!"
"I grew up with the idiot," Matsumoto said, rolling his eyes. "He's always been stupid and impulsive."
"I think there's more going on here than him being stupid and impulsive."
Becky wanted the old Aiba back. The man who'd yanked down the crystals in her shop because of his odd curiosity. She wanted the Aiba back who was humble to a fault, eager to work hard and become successful. Hell, she'd even settle for the Aiba who'd come to her apartment that one night desperate for her help. At least then he hadn't been a total zombie shell of his former self. She needed that Aiba back, the Aiba she'd fallen in love with and was desperate to save.
Even if that vision she'd had in her shop had been wrong, even if she and Aiba weren't destined to be together, he still didn't deserve a life of false love. Becky had gone through every book of spells she still had leftover from witch cram school. Love magic was dangerous. It was damaging. And if Yuriko kept Aiba under her power for much longer, he'd waste away and die. But she still had no physical proof.
"Becky," Matsumoto said, hands on her shoulders. "Thank you for everything you've done for him until now. I'm sorry it has to end this way. Masaki's grown very fond of you."
"Then why is he the one who wants me gone?"
Matsumoto frowned.
"You don't think that's strange?" He said nothing, and it dawned on her. It wasn't really Aiba's call. They were all protecting her, weren't they? "It was Yoshitaka-san's decision, wasn't it?"
"Becky..."
"Look Matsumoto-san, I'm going to leave. And I'm not going to come back, just as requested. But if you care about Aiba-san as much as you seem to think you do, then do one thing for me."
"What's that?"
"Don't let him eat any more of her cupcakes."
--
She flung Yoshitaka Yuriko's sock in Nino's face as soon as he opened the door to her shop. "Whoa, is this really hers?"
"I need your help!" Becky pleaded. "That woman you worship is evil!"
He grinned at her. "You sound like this stalker ex-girlfriend I had in high school."
"I know what it sounds like," she grumbled, carrying the cookie jar over so he could sit down and steal her snacks. He'd been kind enough to switch his sign over to "Nino's Armenian Cuisine and Hookah Parlor." If only Sakurai could see it.
He shoved Yuriko's sock in his pocket. "Okay I'll admit it, you've had me worried."
"That's a new feeling for you, isn't it?"
He smiled. "I know we've never been the best of friends, but as a fellow practitioner of all things magical, I thought it was best to keep an eye on you. I mean, you come over to me and beg me for my Jacket of Invisibility, and every word out of your mouth these days is Aiba, Aiba, Aiba..."
"Maybe I don't need your help..."
He reached across the table and grabbed hold of her hand, his face suddenly serious. "I did a reading with you in mind last night. Hell, I ran your cards four different times, and I got the same result. I mean, it's never this damn similar without the person even there."
He slapped the Tower card down on the table, and her eyes went wide. "Every single time, Tower came up for the immediate challenge you're facing. It didn't matter which spread I did. Every time, Becky."
"And that's bad."
He smirked. "Tower is a way to tell us that what we know to be truth is actually a lie. And it comes to us in shocking clarity. It's a painful thing you have to acknowledge."
"Well," she admitted. "Aiba's engaged to that...that woman now. Their relationship is based on a lie. She's hurting him, Nino. Killing him with this magic. And now she's got me out of the way. I can't go on the set, I can't be near him. I can't help him!"
Nino set down another card. "Five of Cups is an obsession over something you've lost, and last night this was your immediate future. Meaning right now, yes? But the cards acknowledge that, Becky. It's not as hopeless a situation as it may seem."
She rolled her eyes. "Well then skip to the ending here. What's my future? What can I do? How can I stop her?"
He set down the Chariot card before her.
"I don't know what it means," she told him. "I read coffee grounds, you know."
Nino squeezed her hand. "Remember what I told you the last time you bugged me for advice? Believe in yourself. You'll know what to do when the time comes."
--
She paced back and forth, and Ohno was watching her from his comfortable cushion on the floor. "They'll arrest you if you go to the set like a crazy woman," he pointed out.
"I know."
"And they'll arrest you if you try to break in to her place again. Or if you try to kidnap him."
"I know that," she snapped.
"You really love him."
She scowled at the ghost. "Shut up."
Ohno beamed. "It's fun seeing you in love though. Some girls get all cute and stuff, but you're playing on a whole different level. I mean, if Aiba-san only knew how hard you've worked to help him. Baking him all those cakes and things. Trying to thwart the evil psychopath actress who has him hypnotized..."
"Well, so what if I'm in love? He's engaged and under her crazy love spell, and the Japanese media is gobbling it all up!" she shot back. "I love him, but I can't do anything!"
There was a knock at the door. Ohno smiled again. "Maybe it's Aiba-san. Maybe he tried your cake?"
"Maybe you should go clean the toilet!" Becky snapped. She hated being so irritable, but more than that, she hated being useless. So it was almost a relief when she opened her apartment door to find Matsumoto Jun looking nervous in the corridor.
"If you're looking for donations for Aiba-kun and Yuriko-san's wedding shower gifts, count me out," Becky said.
Matsumoto's usual cool exterior was gone, his eyes darting back and forth. "I don't mean to be rude, but could I come inside?"
She held the door open and allowed the manager to enter. "What's wrong? Has something happened?" So help her, if Yuriko had fed Aiba one poisoned cupcake too many and he really was hurt...
"So you were right, there's something going on," Matsumoto admitted. "Aiba's got the weekend off before filming starts up again on Monday, so I just thought he could use some time to relax. He's been working so hard, not thinking about his health, going on and on about how Yuriko-san's wearing him out and..."
Becky winced.
"Sorry," Matsumoto said, "but anyway, I rented this cabin in the mountains. Away from Tokyo, away from the set. Some place where he can just regain his focus and calm down. And because he's Masaki he said fine, but the further we drove from Tokyo, the stranger he started to act. He was whining and jittery, and he kept mumbling about Yuriko's damn cupcakes."
Becky hung on his every word. For the first time in two months, it seemed as though Aiba and Yuriko were finally separated. Whatever hold her magic had on him was definitely snapped, but Becky knew that love magic was even more dangerous when something drastic happened.
"Where is Aiba-kun now?" she asked.
"Well," Matsumoto explained, looking embarrassed, "something was obviously not right. And I can't put my finger on it, but it's obviously something with Yuriko. I was worried she was trying to get him into drugs, something awful like that. So I...I may have..."
"May have what?" she pressed him, desperate to know.
"May have locked him in the cabin and left him there to dry out." The manager started to pace nervously. "I'm worried it may have been the wrong decision. I mean, I've known Masaki forever, and he's never been like this, but abandoning him like that? When he might need me the most? I...I'm not sure it's the right call. So, uh, this is where I come and apologize to you."
"Apologize to me? For what?"
He put his hands on her shoulders. "Becky, you've been more supportive of Masaki than even me, and nobody's really taken the time to thank you. Least of all Masaki himself." He shoved a key into her hand. "This is the key to that cabin, and if there's anyone I can trust to calm Masaki down and get him back to his normal, idiotic self, it's you. I'll pay for the taxi to get you there out of my own pocket. He needs to be away from that woman, but he needs to be able to stay focused on his career, too. I think you're the only one who can help him. Please, Becky? Will you help him?"
Behind Matsumoto, Ohno popped back into the room, giving Becky an encouraging thumbs up. But could she really help him? No amount of palm readings or positive energy was going to help someone under the lure of some psychotic witch. But at the same time, the thought of seeing Aiba again, one on one and without Yuriko getting in the way? Maybe she really could help. Aiba trusted her. He'd said she was the only one who'd had positive things to say about his acting - she had to at least try to reach him.
"I'll...I'll do my best to help him," she said, and Ohno let out a noisy cheer. Of course, Matsumoto didn't notice.
"I'm not asking you to be a miracle worker," Matsumoto told her, "but maybe you can at least talk him down from the whole whirlwind wedding. Get him to just slow down and relax."
While Matsumoto called a taxi for her, Becky packed an overnight bag. She wasn't sure what Aiba was going to be like upon their next meeting, but all she could do was be herself. Yuriko relied on lies and manipulation, and Becky realized that she'd been manipulative with Aiba's feelings herself. Maybe what Aiba Masaki needed was a little honesty.
--
The taxi driver had been smart enough not to comment about their destination, two hours away from the center of Tokyo and out in the middle of nowhere. Aiba's management was footing the bill after all, so the driver happily drove off, leaving Becky and her duffel bag at the foot of a gravel path at sunset.
Matsumoto had given her the key to the cabin and directions, and she headed up the path. Before she left, she'd made sure to use every bit of her power to brew up some coffee for Aiba, lacing it with charms for serenity and relaxation. She hoped. She'd been in a hurry after all, and she'd had to mumble the incantations to keep Matsumoto from noticing in the living room.
The cabin itself wasn't too far up the path, nestled between tall, leafy trees. Her stomach was a bundle of knots, knowing that Aiba was shut up inside and probably scared. Jun had somehow conned him into the cabin's windowless basement and left him there. She unlocked the front door, announcing her presence.
"Aiba-san! It's Becky," she called into the empty cabin. It was cheaply furnished but cozy, and she could see Aiba's suitcase in the corner where he'd left it before his manager had locked him away. "Aiba-san, can you hear me?"
There was a thump from the next room, and she set down her bag. "Aiba-kun?"
"Becky!" His voice was muffled by the door, and he started pounding on it. "Oh Becky, thank god it's you!"
But who knew how much Yuriko's magic had addled his mind? She wiggled her fingers at the other doors and windows, whispering charms to keep them locked. If Aiba really wanted to run away, he probably could since a child had stronger magic than she did, but she at least had to try. She unlocked the basement door with the key, and Aiba came stumbling forward, looking around in a bit of a daze.
"Where's Jun?" he muttered, staring around. "Why are you here? Jun-kun said he was going to get something from the car and he must have forgotten about me..."
She tried to meet his eyes. "Aiba-kun? Do you...know why Matsumoto-san brought you here?"
"Some sort of relaxing weekend, I guess. All about the wilderness, no phones, no Internet. I haven't been able to chat with Yuriko-chan in hours," he said. His eyes were still wild, and he was almost vibrating with his seeming nervousness. Or seeming lack of Yuriko's dark magic controlling his mind. "Though I can't say being locked in the basement was very relaxing. But I'm glad you're here...wait, how did you get here?"
"Will you sit with me?" she asked, moving to the lumpy sofa in the center of the cabin floor. "I'm here to talk to you. I brought you some coffee..."
He obligingly sat down beside her but shook his head at the thermos. "Yuriko only wants me to eat food that she's prepared."
She set the thermos down on the floor. "Aiba-kun, about her..."
"The whole engagement thing was impulsive, I know. I barely even remember asking her to marry me. It's so weird."
She grabbed hold of his wrist. "She fired me, you know. She made me leave the set of the drama."
Aiba looked apologetic, almost like his real self was peeking through. "I'm very sorry, she said you were a bad influence."
She was the bad influence? Her grip on Aiba's wrist tightened. "You're the one who came to me in the first place. You wanted my help. And not just for your acting. Listen Aiba-kun, I don't really know how to tell you this, but Yuriko-san is a dangerous woman."
Aiba laughed at that. "What, does she have a bad aura or something? Maybe you read that wrong in the tea leaves, coffee, whatever. Yuriko-chan's my fiancee!"
She didn't want to tell him. Seeing the earnestness in his eyes that she'd fallen so hard for, she almost didn't have the heart to say anything, but Jun was counting on her.
"I didn't read anything. Ever," she admitted. "Not in your coffee, not on your palm, not ever."
"What are you talking about?" he asked in confusion, pulling away from her.
She could feel herself tearing up. Even if she wasn't the person who had been the cruelest to him, she'd still lied. "I'm not really a fortune teller. I mean, I run a shop, but I'm a fraud. I made it all up. And I'm really sorry. But I'm not lying when I tell you that Yuriko-san is trying to hurt you."
Aiba got to his feet. "So you lied to me for over two months and now you're not, huh? What's with the change of heart? Are you jealous or something? Were you just using me to get customers in your shop?"
"No! Would you just listen to me?" she cried, getting to her feet. "Yuriko's putting something in the food she gives you..."
"I don't want any of your explanations, Becky-san. I would like you to just leave before I lose my temper," Aiba said, and she hated the look in his eyes, the betrayal she could see in them. "Please."
"Aiba-san, I can't leave," she said, trying to stand her ground. "You don't know it, but she's hurting you..."
"I said that's enough!" he shouted at her, and his body started to shake. As if something, or someone, was starting to interfere...
Becky sensed it deep in her gut, whirling around a moment later to see Yoshitaka Yuriko standing in the doorway. The actress laughed as soon as their eyes met.
"You call that a protection charm? Are you kidding me?" Yuriko chuckled, shaking her head. "Everything about you is no good. From your fortune telling to your...other talents."
"Yuriko-chan, you're here!" Aiba cried in happiness.
Aiba tried to hurry over to his fiancee's side, but she raised up her hands and seemed to freeze him in place. "Oh Masaki, the things I have to do to keep you," Yuriko said with a sigh.
And with a flick of the actress' wrist, Becky went flying, the unreal strength of Yuriko's magic forcing her down to the floor hard.
Aiba gasped. "Yuriko-chan, what the hell..."
Yuriko cracked her knuckles. "I told you to stay away from her. She only wants to use you..."
"What did you do to her?" Aiba asked, still unable to move. "Becky, are you okay? Becky!"
For her part, Becky ached in a dozen places. All she'd prepared was the coffee, not her other abilities (or lack thereof) - she hadn't counted on Yuriko finding her way all the way out to the cabin. "Just leave him alone. You're going to kill him if you keep using that magic," Becky wheezed. "It's not right what you're doing!"
"What I'm doing is becoming the most beloved actress in Japan! You know what that means? It means Hollywood, Cannes, whatever I want to do! And if I have to tie my star to some idiot to get there, then I'm going to!" Yuriko screamed.
"What do you mean idiot?" Aiba wondered. "Yuriko-chan, I can't move! Did you do this? How did you do this? Let me go!"
"You're the idiot, idiot!" Yuriko berated him as Becky tried crawling back across the floor to try and stand between Yuriko's powerful magic and the oblivious Aiba. "Two months I've had to deal with your stupidity! Two months I've had to make lovey-dovey eyes at you and listen to your bizarre jokes and lame pick-up lines and endure all your farting in the bedroom, but we're finally at the top, aren't we? We're the golden couple! Now let's get out of here, you and me. Let's go get something to eat and go register our marriage and just forget this pathetic excuse for a witch ever existed!"
Aiba was obviously hurting. "You...you love me, don't you, Yuriko-chan? You're not...you're not really using me, are you?"
"Does it even matter?" Yuriko shot back at him. "I'll feed you a cupcake and five seconds later you'll be putty in my hands. Men are such idiots. You're nothing more than a pet to me!"
Becky stumbled to her feet, blocking Yuriko from Aiba's sight. She stared the actress down. "He deserves better than you. You could have earned your fame all on your own. Why did you have to hurt him?" She remembered the nervousness Aiba had had when he'd come to her apartment that night, wondering if he should ask Yuriko out, remembered the sincerity in his eyes. "My magic may be pathetic, sure, but I don't use it to get ahead at such a high cost."
Yuriko sighed and pointed at her, knocking her back down once more. "Would you just go away? I need to feed my pet his cupcake!"
She got to her feet again defiantly. "He's not your pet. He's not anyone's pet. He's a human being!"
Again and again Yuriko toyed with her, standing around with her bored expression and using telekinetic magic to fling random objects from around the room at her. Becky deflected them all, her anger barely contained as she made sure she stayed in front of Aiba, protecting him. Aiba begged Yuriko to stop, and Becky worked harder than she ever had in witch cram school. She worked harder than she ever had in her entire life.
Becky finally managed to direct a book Yuriko had flung at her back in the actress' direction, and she just barely dodged it. Becky used it to her advantage, taking a deep breath before lifting her arms and making the couch itself levitate and wobble. "Yuriko-san, you need to stop."
"You'd do all this to protect that idiot?" Yuriko laughed. "You're even dumber than he is! I should just kill you both! A murder-suicide would really get the public on my side!"
As Yuriko raised her arms to attack, Becky felt a vision rip through her, a vision of nothing but pure, white rage. She didn't know where she was, but she was riding in a chariot. Becky heard herself scream and everything seemed to slip away...
--
...and then she was coming to, and she was on the floor, save for her head which was propped up in Aiba's lap. "Becky!" he was saying, but he sounded so far away. "Becky, are you okay?"
She blinked a few times. Her head ached, but she forced herself to sit up. The feeling of Aiba's arm wrapping around her shoulder then was almost unreal. The cabin was a mess - the couch Becky had somehow raised earlier was overturned and in pieces in the corner. All the other furniture was destroyed. It was as though just that one room had been visited by a tornado save for one circle - a circle of complete calm that consisted of just her and Aiba.
And then The Amazing Nino was looming over her with a grin. "I'm rather disappointed I didn't get to join in the fight."
"Nino...what are you..."
Sakurai Sho was standing beside Nino soon after, also staring her down. "Do you have any idea how much paperwork this is going to create for me?" he grumbled.
"Can we back up?" she asked the three men surrounding her. "What the hell happened?"
"You happened, Becky," Aiba explained. "She tried to kill us, and you wouldn't let her come close. I couldn't do anything. It was all you."
"I didn't..." All the blood seemed to rush out of her. "I didn't kill her, did I?"
Sakurai shook his head, adjusting his glasses. "Ninomiya and I arrived just in time. I've got her in a pretty fancy binding spell, and the Bureau's already got a holding cell ready for her. She's not going anywhere."
Fancy binding spell? The man had finally used his magic, and she'd managed to exhaust herself so badly that she hadn't been able to see it.
"Didn't know you had it in you," The Amazing Nino teased her, "but it seems like the cards knew you better than I did."
Sakurai wasn't really in a joking mood. "I went to check up on you, and Ohno-san was kind enough to point me in the right direction. It was foolish to go against someone of her strength on your own. I'll admit that you held your own, but I'm going to have to wipe Aiba-san's memory. Not to mention what we'll have to come up with in order to salvage Aiba-san's television program!"
"Oi!" Aiba complained, and Becky realized he still hadn't let go of her. "Look...I...I get that you guys are all special. Or maybe I'm just an idiot and you guys are normal in comparison. Or something. But seriously, don't wipe my memory, please? I can keep all of this secret. All of it! I swear!"
The Amazing Nino grinned. "He's a comedian, Sho-san. If he started blabbing about his psychotic witch co-star drugging him with magical cupcakes, who's gonna believe him, right? Have a heart."
Sakurai scowled. "My family has worked for generations to keep our kind a secret..."
"Becky saved my life," Aiba said. "She put herself in danger for my sake. I don't want to forget that. I never want to forget that."
She could feel a blush creeping into her cheeks, and Nino helped her up. "We came in two cars. I'll take you kids home," The Amazing Nino said before turning to Sakurai. "Come on, Sho-san, isn't it enough that you're locking the nutjob up?"
"The nutjob?" Becky murmured. "She was your favorite actress."
"And I'll imagine her hand-feeding me her special love cupcakes with a smile on my face until the end of time," Nino shot back before turning back to Sakurai. "You're smart. You can figure out something to tell TV Asahi."
Sakurai still looked pissed off but he reluctantly agreed. He didn't offer any details about what would happen to Yuriko while in Bureau custody, but Becky suspected that at the very least her acting career was over. She and Aiba headed back to Tokyo, sitting side by side in the back seat of The Amazing Nino's tiny car.
While Nino sang along with the radio, she wondered what kind of power she'd been able to use to defeat a witch who was so much more powerful than her. Was her love for Aiba really enough to fight back so strongly? She glanced over to see him in profile, looking out at the lights on the highway as the car drove onward. What on earth did he think of her now? She felt her heart start to race - he was the man she'd risked her life to save, and even if she didn't understand the full extent of her powers, she'd do it all over again without hesitation. Maybe her feelings for Aiba had unlocked something in her brain she just didn't yet understand.
"Aiba-kun," she said quietly.
He turned to look at her, and where he'd been so blank and strange for the past several weeks, she could see the old Aiba Masaki again, though he looked a little worse for wear.
"I'm sorry I lied to you," she told him. "About...well, everything."
He only nodded, still seemingly overwhelmed by the number of realizations he'd had in such a short amount of time. She left him to his contemplation as Nino's car puttered along with no magical assistance whatsoever.
The story was already on the news by the time Nino dropped her off at her apartment. Ohno's face was full of a pride she didn't feel she deserved as Yoshitaka Yuriko had apparently just been arrested for drug possession. Aiba Masaki, however, was not accused of any wrongdoing. It was only creating more interest in Aiba's drama - would they kill Yuriko's character off? Public sympathy was already swaying to Aiba-san - his career was definitely remaining intact. Good job, Sakurai-san, she thought with a grin before wincing.
"Ohno-kun," she mumbled as the ghost lightly escorted her down the hall to her bedroom to rest. "Remind me to never use that much magic in one go ever again."
He smiled as he tucked her blankets around her. "I'll remember."
--
Though the Yuriko obstacle was out of her path, Becky didn't return to the set of Aiba's drama. She instead devoted her full attention to her shop and to understanding the new magical abilities she'd finally managed to unlock within herself. The Amazing Nino and Sakurai helped her as best they could, but Becky was fairly certain that she was always going to be a bit of a klutz when it came to magic.
She'd always be an odd mishmash of a witch.
She narrowly dodged an elbow in the head as she got off the subway train and walked to her shop in Akasaka. She turned the sign to "Open!" and readied her coffee beans and materials for another less than lucrative day. Across the way, The Amazing Nino was on vacation - at least that was what the "Nino's Tanning Salon and Gerbil Kennel" sign implied to her.
Becky was just putting the finishing touches on a doodle of the newest espresso drink on her menu board when she heard the chimes by the door. It was Matsumoto Jun in a fancy suit, Aiba Masaki at his heels. Jun looked at her and pointed to his watch. "Fifteen minutes," was all the manager said before heading back out the door.
She felt herself blush as Aiba walked over to the bar counter with his cheerful smile. He'd been sending her emails for a few weeks, checking up on her with cheerful, flirty messages full of strange misspellings. But it was the first time she'd laid eyes on him since the night in the cabin.
"You're not here for a fortune, are you?" she asked him. "Because as you well know, I'm kind of a fraud."
His drama had just finished airing, and he looked far healthier and happier. "Why don't you brew a cup for yourself, on me. I mean, if anyone can go around pretending to be a fortune teller, it can't hurt if I give it a go, right?"
She only nodded, feeling his warm, kind eyes watching her as she brewed herself a cup. While she drank, he told her he was taking a break from acting for a while. He'd be focusing more on his comedy and variety work with his partner Yokoyama since they'd been offered their own show in a late night timeslot. While not as glamorous or high profile as his drama, he seemed rather content with the concept. He didn't bother asking her for advice either.
Instead he held out his hand when she had drained the cup, still smiling his gorgeous smile. "Come on, let me read your fortune."
"There's a trick to it," she said. "It's all about confidence. I heard that if you believe in yourself, others will undoubtedly believe in you."
He grabbed the cup and started to pace the floor of the shop, walking between the tables. She came out from behind the counter, standing there patiently while he launched into a theatrical reading of her fortune.
"I envision great things for you, Becky," Aiba announced with a flourish. "But that's to be expected of someone smart and pretty and wonderful like you..."
She shook her head. "Skip the flattery, get to the fortune," she said huffily, though hearing the words 'Becky' and 'smart' and 'pretty' in the same sentence coming from the lips of the guy she really liked was enough to make her giddy.
He approached her then, trapping her between himself and her bar counter. He set the cup down and looked her right in the eye. "I don't think you're a fraud. And I wasn't lying back then when I said I wanted you to be my good luck charm, that I wanted you near me. I just didn't realize how much."
He moved closer, slipping his arms around her. He was solid and strong, and she didn't need a crystal ball (real or fake) to see how enamored he was with her.
"I needed you then, but not as much as I need you now." He giggled in embarrassment. "That is, if you'll have me, of course."
She grinned at him. "Well, what did my coffee cup say? What's my future?"
He kissed her for the first time as sunshine bounced off her crystals to send dozens of rainbows all around the walls of her shop. And, Becky decided as she lost herself in Aiba's embrace, it was better than any vision.
The security guard at the set gave her a sad look the next day. "I'm sorry, I've been told not to let you through anymore."
She pulled her rainbow cloak tightly around her. Yuriko knew, she must have known that Becky had been in her apartment snooping around. "What do you mean? I've been here almost every day for two months. I'm Aiba-san's assistant."
"The order came from Aiba-san himself. Please leave without making a fuss."
She grabbed the man by the arm. "Please, what's changed? Have I done something wrong? Can I at least speak with Aiba-san's manager?"
The security guard sighed. "I really shouldn't..."
"I signed a contract," she insisted, "and they've given me no notice that they intended to break it. I'd like to speak with Matsumoto Jun, please. Or should I be speaking with my lawyer?"
Matsumoto was there within minutes. "Becky, I'm very sorry. Masaki thinks it's for the best. We'll pay the rest of your contract in full, I promise."
"He's getting married? I mean, isn't this ringing alarm bells? They barely know each other. I foresee this being an incredibly bad decision on Aiba-san's part!"
"I grew up with the idiot," Matsumoto said, rolling his eyes. "He's always been stupid and impulsive."
"I think there's more going on here than him being stupid and impulsive."
Becky wanted the old Aiba back. The man who'd yanked down the crystals in her shop because of his odd curiosity. She wanted the Aiba back who was humble to a fault, eager to work hard and become successful. Hell, she'd even settle for the Aiba who'd come to her apartment that one night desperate for her help. At least then he hadn't been a total zombie shell of his former self. She needed that Aiba back, the Aiba she'd fallen in love with and was desperate to save.
Even if that vision she'd had in her shop had been wrong, even if she and Aiba weren't destined to be together, he still didn't deserve a life of false love. Becky had gone through every book of spells she still had leftover from witch cram school. Love magic was dangerous. It was damaging. And if Yuriko kept Aiba under her power for much longer, he'd waste away and die. But she still had no physical proof.
"Becky," Matsumoto said, hands on her shoulders. "Thank you for everything you've done for him until now. I'm sorry it has to end this way. Masaki's grown very fond of you."
"Then why is he the one who wants me gone?"
Matsumoto frowned.
"You don't think that's strange?" He said nothing, and it dawned on her. It wasn't really Aiba's call. They were all protecting her, weren't they? "It was Yoshitaka-san's decision, wasn't it?"
"Becky..."
"Look Matsumoto-san, I'm going to leave. And I'm not going to come back, just as requested. But if you care about Aiba-san as much as you seem to think you do, then do one thing for me."
"What's that?"
"Don't let him eat any more of her cupcakes."
--
She flung Yoshitaka Yuriko's sock in Nino's face as soon as he opened the door to her shop. "Whoa, is this really hers?"
"I need your help!" Becky pleaded. "That woman you worship is evil!"
He grinned at her. "You sound like this stalker ex-girlfriend I had in high school."
"I know what it sounds like," she grumbled, carrying the cookie jar over so he could sit down and steal her snacks. He'd been kind enough to switch his sign over to "Nino's Armenian Cuisine and Hookah Parlor." If only Sakurai could see it.
He shoved Yuriko's sock in his pocket. "Okay I'll admit it, you've had me worried."
"That's a new feeling for you, isn't it?"
He smiled. "I know we've never been the best of friends, but as a fellow practitioner of all things magical, I thought it was best to keep an eye on you. I mean, you come over to me and beg me for my Jacket of Invisibility, and every word out of your mouth these days is Aiba, Aiba, Aiba..."
"Maybe I don't need your help..."
He reached across the table and grabbed hold of her hand, his face suddenly serious. "I did a reading with you in mind last night. Hell, I ran your cards four different times, and I got the same result. I mean, it's never this damn similar without the person even there."
He slapped the Tower card down on the table, and her eyes went wide. "Every single time, Tower came up for the immediate challenge you're facing. It didn't matter which spread I did. Every time, Becky."
"And that's bad."
He smirked. "Tower is a way to tell us that what we know to be truth is actually a lie. And it comes to us in shocking clarity. It's a painful thing you have to acknowledge."
"Well," she admitted. "Aiba's engaged to that...that woman now. Their relationship is based on a lie. She's hurting him, Nino. Killing him with this magic. And now she's got me out of the way. I can't go on the set, I can't be near him. I can't help him!"
Nino set down another card. "Five of Cups is an obsession over something you've lost, and last night this was your immediate future. Meaning right now, yes? But the cards acknowledge that, Becky. It's not as hopeless a situation as it may seem."
She rolled her eyes. "Well then skip to the ending here. What's my future? What can I do? How can I stop her?"
He set down the Chariot card before her.
"I don't know what it means," she told him. "I read coffee grounds, you know."
Nino squeezed her hand. "Remember what I told you the last time you bugged me for advice? Believe in yourself. You'll know what to do when the time comes."
--
She paced back and forth, and Ohno was watching her from his comfortable cushion on the floor. "They'll arrest you if you go to the set like a crazy woman," he pointed out.
"I know."
"And they'll arrest you if you try to break in to her place again. Or if you try to kidnap him."
"I know that," she snapped.
"You really love him."
She scowled at the ghost. "Shut up."
Ohno beamed. "It's fun seeing you in love though. Some girls get all cute and stuff, but you're playing on a whole different level. I mean, if Aiba-san only knew how hard you've worked to help him. Baking him all those cakes and things. Trying to thwart the evil psychopath actress who has him hypnotized..."
"Well, so what if I'm in love? He's engaged and under her crazy love spell, and the Japanese media is gobbling it all up!" she shot back. "I love him, but I can't do anything!"
There was a knock at the door. Ohno smiled again. "Maybe it's Aiba-san. Maybe he tried your cake?"
"Maybe you should go clean the toilet!" Becky snapped. She hated being so irritable, but more than that, she hated being useless. So it was almost a relief when she opened her apartment door to find Matsumoto Jun looking nervous in the corridor.
"If you're looking for donations for Aiba-kun and Yuriko-san's wedding shower gifts, count me out," Becky said.
Matsumoto's usual cool exterior was gone, his eyes darting back and forth. "I don't mean to be rude, but could I come inside?"
She held the door open and allowed the manager to enter. "What's wrong? Has something happened?" So help her, if Yuriko had fed Aiba one poisoned cupcake too many and he really was hurt...
"So you were right, there's something going on," Matsumoto admitted. "Aiba's got the weekend off before filming starts up again on Monday, so I just thought he could use some time to relax. He's been working so hard, not thinking about his health, going on and on about how Yuriko-san's wearing him out and..."
Becky winced.
"Sorry," Matsumoto said, "but anyway, I rented this cabin in the mountains. Away from Tokyo, away from the set. Some place where he can just regain his focus and calm down. And because he's Masaki he said fine, but the further we drove from Tokyo, the stranger he started to act. He was whining and jittery, and he kept mumbling about Yuriko's damn cupcakes."
Becky hung on his every word. For the first time in two months, it seemed as though Aiba and Yuriko were finally separated. Whatever hold her magic had on him was definitely snapped, but Becky knew that love magic was even more dangerous when something drastic happened.
"Where is Aiba-kun now?" she asked.
"Well," Matsumoto explained, looking embarrassed, "something was obviously not right. And I can't put my finger on it, but it's obviously something with Yuriko. I was worried she was trying to get him into drugs, something awful like that. So I...I may have..."
"May have what?" she pressed him, desperate to know.
"May have locked him in the cabin and left him there to dry out." The manager started to pace nervously. "I'm worried it may have been the wrong decision. I mean, I've known Masaki forever, and he's never been like this, but abandoning him like that? When he might need me the most? I...I'm not sure it's the right call. So, uh, this is where I come and apologize to you."
"Apologize to me? For what?"
He put his hands on her shoulders. "Becky, you've been more supportive of Masaki than even me, and nobody's really taken the time to thank you. Least of all Masaki himself." He shoved a key into her hand. "This is the key to that cabin, and if there's anyone I can trust to calm Masaki down and get him back to his normal, idiotic self, it's you. I'll pay for the taxi to get you there out of my own pocket. He needs to be away from that woman, but he needs to be able to stay focused on his career, too. I think you're the only one who can help him. Please, Becky? Will you help him?"
Behind Matsumoto, Ohno popped back into the room, giving Becky an encouraging thumbs up. But could she really help him? No amount of palm readings or positive energy was going to help someone under the lure of some psychotic witch. But at the same time, the thought of seeing Aiba again, one on one and without Yuriko getting in the way? Maybe she really could help. Aiba trusted her. He'd said she was the only one who'd had positive things to say about his acting - she had to at least try to reach him.
"I'll...I'll do my best to help him," she said, and Ohno let out a noisy cheer. Of course, Matsumoto didn't notice.
"I'm not asking you to be a miracle worker," Matsumoto told her, "but maybe you can at least talk him down from the whole whirlwind wedding. Get him to just slow down and relax."
While Matsumoto called a taxi for her, Becky packed an overnight bag. She wasn't sure what Aiba was going to be like upon their next meeting, but all she could do was be herself. Yuriko relied on lies and manipulation, and Becky realized that she'd been manipulative with Aiba's feelings herself. Maybe what Aiba Masaki needed was a little honesty.
--
The taxi driver had been smart enough not to comment about their destination, two hours away from the center of Tokyo and out in the middle of nowhere. Aiba's management was footing the bill after all, so the driver happily drove off, leaving Becky and her duffel bag at the foot of a gravel path at sunset.
Matsumoto had given her the key to the cabin and directions, and she headed up the path. Before she left, she'd made sure to use every bit of her power to brew up some coffee for Aiba, lacing it with charms for serenity and relaxation. She hoped. She'd been in a hurry after all, and she'd had to mumble the incantations to keep Matsumoto from noticing in the living room.
The cabin itself wasn't too far up the path, nestled between tall, leafy trees. Her stomach was a bundle of knots, knowing that Aiba was shut up inside and probably scared. Jun had somehow conned him into the cabin's windowless basement and left him there. She unlocked the front door, announcing her presence.
"Aiba-san! It's Becky," she called into the empty cabin. It was cheaply furnished but cozy, and she could see Aiba's suitcase in the corner where he'd left it before his manager had locked him away. "Aiba-san, can you hear me?"
There was a thump from the next room, and she set down her bag. "Aiba-kun?"
"Becky!" His voice was muffled by the door, and he started pounding on it. "Oh Becky, thank god it's you!"
But who knew how much Yuriko's magic had addled his mind? She wiggled her fingers at the other doors and windows, whispering charms to keep them locked. If Aiba really wanted to run away, he probably could since a child had stronger magic than she did, but she at least had to try. She unlocked the basement door with the key, and Aiba came stumbling forward, looking around in a bit of a daze.
"Where's Jun?" he muttered, staring around. "Why are you here? Jun-kun said he was going to get something from the car and he must have forgotten about me..."
She tried to meet his eyes. "Aiba-kun? Do you...know why Matsumoto-san brought you here?"
"Some sort of relaxing weekend, I guess. All about the wilderness, no phones, no Internet. I haven't been able to chat with Yuriko-chan in hours," he said. His eyes were still wild, and he was almost vibrating with his seeming nervousness. Or seeming lack of Yuriko's dark magic controlling his mind. "Though I can't say being locked in the basement was very relaxing. But I'm glad you're here...wait, how did you get here?"
"Will you sit with me?" she asked, moving to the lumpy sofa in the center of the cabin floor. "I'm here to talk to you. I brought you some coffee..."
He obligingly sat down beside her but shook his head at the thermos. "Yuriko only wants me to eat food that she's prepared."
She set the thermos down on the floor. "Aiba-kun, about her..."
"The whole engagement thing was impulsive, I know. I barely even remember asking her to marry me. It's so weird."
She grabbed hold of his wrist. "She fired me, you know. She made me leave the set of the drama."
Aiba looked apologetic, almost like his real self was peeking through. "I'm very sorry, she said you were a bad influence."
She was the bad influence? Her grip on Aiba's wrist tightened. "You're the one who came to me in the first place. You wanted my help. And not just for your acting. Listen Aiba-kun, I don't really know how to tell you this, but Yuriko-san is a dangerous woman."
Aiba laughed at that. "What, does she have a bad aura or something? Maybe you read that wrong in the tea leaves, coffee, whatever. Yuriko-chan's my fiancee!"
She didn't want to tell him. Seeing the earnestness in his eyes that she'd fallen so hard for, she almost didn't have the heart to say anything, but Jun was counting on her.
"I didn't read anything. Ever," she admitted. "Not in your coffee, not on your palm, not ever."
"What are you talking about?" he asked in confusion, pulling away from her.
She could feel herself tearing up. Even if she wasn't the person who had been the cruelest to him, she'd still lied. "I'm not really a fortune teller. I mean, I run a shop, but I'm a fraud. I made it all up. And I'm really sorry. But I'm not lying when I tell you that Yuriko-san is trying to hurt you."
Aiba got to his feet. "So you lied to me for over two months and now you're not, huh? What's with the change of heart? Are you jealous or something? Were you just using me to get customers in your shop?"
"No! Would you just listen to me?" she cried, getting to her feet. "Yuriko's putting something in the food she gives you..."
"I don't want any of your explanations, Becky-san. I would like you to just leave before I lose my temper," Aiba said, and she hated the look in his eyes, the betrayal she could see in them. "Please."
"Aiba-san, I can't leave," she said, trying to stand her ground. "You don't know it, but she's hurting you..."
"I said that's enough!" he shouted at her, and his body started to shake. As if something, or someone, was starting to interfere...
Becky sensed it deep in her gut, whirling around a moment later to see Yoshitaka Yuriko standing in the doorway. The actress laughed as soon as their eyes met.
"You call that a protection charm? Are you kidding me?" Yuriko chuckled, shaking her head. "Everything about you is no good. From your fortune telling to your...other talents."
"Yuriko-chan, you're here!" Aiba cried in happiness.
Aiba tried to hurry over to his fiancee's side, but she raised up her hands and seemed to freeze him in place. "Oh Masaki, the things I have to do to keep you," Yuriko said with a sigh.
And with a flick of the actress' wrist, Becky went flying, the unreal strength of Yuriko's magic forcing her down to the floor hard.
Aiba gasped. "Yuriko-chan, what the hell..."
Yuriko cracked her knuckles. "I told you to stay away from her. She only wants to use you..."
"What did you do to her?" Aiba asked, still unable to move. "Becky, are you okay? Becky!"
For her part, Becky ached in a dozen places. All she'd prepared was the coffee, not her other abilities (or lack thereof) - she hadn't counted on Yuriko finding her way all the way out to the cabin. "Just leave him alone. You're going to kill him if you keep using that magic," Becky wheezed. "It's not right what you're doing!"
"What I'm doing is becoming the most beloved actress in Japan! You know what that means? It means Hollywood, Cannes, whatever I want to do! And if I have to tie my star to some idiot to get there, then I'm going to!" Yuriko screamed.
"What do you mean idiot?" Aiba wondered. "Yuriko-chan, I can't move! Did you do this? How did you do this? Let me go!"
"You're the idiot, idiot!" Yuriko berated him as Becky tried crawling back across the floor to try and stand between Yuriko's powerful magic and the oblivious Aiba. "Two months I've had to deal with your stupidity! Two months I've had to make lovey-dovey eyes at you and listen to your bizarre jokes and lame pick-up lines and endure all your farting in the bedroom, but we're finally at the top, aren't we? We're the golden couple! Now let's get out of here, you and me. Let's go get something to eat and go register our marriage and just forget this pathetic excuse for a witch ever existed!"
Aiba was obviously hurting. "You...you love me, don't you, Yuriko-chan? You're not...you're not really using me, are you?"
"Does it even matter?" Yuriko shot back at him. "I'll feed you a cupcake and five seconds later you'll be putty in my hands. Men are such idiots. You're nothing more than a pet to me!"
Becky stumbled to her feet, blocking Yuriko from Aiba's sight. She stared the actress down. "He deserves better than you. You could have earned your fame all on your own. Why did you have to hurt him?" She remembered the nervousness Aiba had had when he'd come to her apartment that night, wondering if he should ask Yuriko out, remembered the sincerity in his eyes. "My magic may be pathetic, sure, but I don't use it to get ahead at such a high cost."
Yuriko sighed and pointed at her, knocking her back down once more. "Would you just go away? I need to feed my pet his cupcake!"
She got to her feet again defiantly. "He's not your pet. He's not anyone's pet. He's a human being!"
Again and again Yuriko toyed with her, standing around with her bored expression and using telekinetic magic to fling random objects from around the room at her. Becky deflected them all, her anger barely contained as she made sure she stayed in front of Aiba, protecting him. Aiba begged Yuriko to stop, and Becky worked harder than she ever had in witch cram school. She worked harder than she ever had in her entire life.
Becky finally managed to direct a book Yuriko had flung at her back in the actress' direction, and she just barely dodged it. Becky used it to her advantage, taking a deep breath before lifting her arms and making the couch itself levitate and wobble. "Yuriko-san, you need to stop."
"You'd do all this to protect that idiot?" Yuriko laughed. "You're even dumber than he is! I should just kill you both! A murder-suicide would really get the public on my side!"
As Yuriko raised her arms to attack, Becky felt a vision rip through her, a vision of nothing but pure, white rage. She didn't know where she was, but she was riding in a chariot. Becky heard herself scream and everything seemed to slip away...
--
...and then she was coming to, and she was on the floor, save for her head which was propped up in Aiba's lap. "Becky!" he was saying, but he sounded so far away. "Becky, are you okay?"
She blinked a few times. Her head ached, but she forced herself to sit up. The feeling of Aiba's arm wrapping around her shoulder then was almost unreal. The cabin was a mess - the couch Becky had somehow raised earlier was overturned and in pieces in the corner. All the other furniture was destroyed. It was as though just that one room had been visited by a tornado save for one circle - a circle of complete calm that consisted of just her and Aiba.
And then The Amazing Nino was looming over her with a grin. "I'm rather disappointed I didn't get to join in the fight."
"Nino...what are you..."
Sakurai Sho was standing beside Nino soon after, also staring her down. "Do you have any idea how much paperwork this is going to create for me?" he grumbled.
"Can we back up?" she asked the three men surrounding her. "What the hell happened?"
"You happened, Becky," Aiba explained. "She tried to kill us, and you wouldn't let her come close. I couldn't do anything. It was all you."
"I didn't..." All the blood seemed to rush out of her. "I didn't kill her, did I?"
Sakurai shook his head, adjusting his glasses. "Ninomiya and I arrived just in time. I've got her in a pretty fancy binding spell, and the Bureau's already got a holding cell ready for her. She's not going anywhere."
Fancy binding spell? The man had finally used his magic, and she'd managed to exhaust herself so badly that she hadn't been able to see it.
"Didn't know you had it in you," The Amazing Nino teased her, "but it seems like the cards knew you better than I did."
Sakurai wasn't really in a joking mood. "I went to check up on you, and Ohno-san was kind enough to point me in the right direction. It was foolish to go against someone of her strength on your own. I'll admit that you held your own, but I'm going to have to wipe Aiba-san's memory. Not to mention what we'll have to come up with in order to salvage Aiba-san's television program!"
"Oi!" Aiba complained, and Becky realized he still hadn't let go of her. "Look...I...I get that you guys are all special. Or maybe I'm just an idiot and you guys are normal in comparison. Or something. But seriously, don't wipe my memory, please? I can keep all of this secret. All of it! I swear!"
The Amazing Nino grinned. "He's a comedian, Sho-san. If he started blabbing about his psychotic witch co-star drugging him with magical cupcakes, who's gonna believe him, right? Have a heart."
Sakurai scowled. "My family has worked for generations to keep our kind a secret..."
"Becky saved my life," Aiba said. "She put herself in danger for my sake. I don't want to forget that. I never want to forget that."
She could feel a blush creeping into her cheeks, and Nino helped her up. "We came in two cars. I'll take you kids home," The Amazing Nino said before turning to Sakurai. "Come on, Sho-san, isn't it enough that you're locking the nutjob up?"
"The nutjob?" Becky murmured. "She was your favorite actress."
"And I'll imagine her hand-feeding me her special love cupcakes with a smile on my face until the end of time," Nino shot back before turning back to Sakurai. "You're smart. You can figure out something to tell TV Asahi."
Sakurai still looked pissed off but he reluctantly agreed. He didn't offer any details about what would happen to Yuriko while in Bureau custody, but Becky suspected that at the very least her acting career was over. She and Aiba headed back to Tokyo, sitting side by side in the back seat of The Amazing Nino's tiny car.
While Nino sang along with the radio, she wondered what kind of power she'd been able to use to defeat a witch who was so much more powerful than her. Was her love for Aiba really enough to fight back so strongly? She glanced over to see him in profile, looking out at the lights on the highway as the car drove onward. What on earth did he think of her now? She felt her heart start to race - he was the man she'd risked her life to save, and even if she didn't understand the full extent of her powers, she'd do it all over again without hesitation. Maybe her feelings for Aiba had unlocked something in her brain she just didn't yet understand.
"Aiba-kun," she said quietly.
He turned to look at her, and where he'd been so blank and strange for the past several weeks, she could see the old Aiba Masaki again, though he looked a little worse for wear.
"I'm sorry I lied to you," she told him. "About...well, everything."
He only nodded, still seemingly overwhelmed by the number of realizations he'd had in such a short amount of time. She left him to his contemplation as Nino's car puttered along with no magical assistance whatsoever.
The story was already on the news by the time Nino dropped her off at her apartment. Ohno's face was full of a pride she didn't feel she deserved as Yoshitaka Yuriko had apparently just been arrested for drug possession. Aiba Masaki, however, was not accused of any wrongdoing. It was only creating more interest in Aiba's drama - would they kill Yuriko's character off? Public sympathy was already swaying to Aiba-san - his career was definitely remaining intact. Good job, Sakurai-san, she thought with a grin before wincing.
"Ohno-kun," she mumbled as the ghost lightly escorted her down the hall to her bedroom to rest. "Remind me to never use that much magic in one go ever again."
He smiled as he tucked her blankets around her. "I'll remember."
--
Though the Yuriko obstacle was out of her path, Becky didn't return to the set of Aiba's drama. She instead devoted her full attention to her shop and to understanding the new magical abilities she'd finally managed to unlock within herself. The Amazing Nino and Sakurai helped her as best they could, but Becky was fairly certain that she was always going to be a bit of a klutz when it came to magic.
She'd always be an odd mishmash of a witch.
She narrowly dodged an elbow in the head as she got off the subway train and walked to her shop in Akasaka. She turned the sign to "Open!" and readied her coffee beans and materials for another less than lucrative day. Across the way, The Amazing Nino was on vacation - at least that was what the "Nino's Tanning Salon and Gerbil Kennel" sign implied to her.
Becky was just putting the finishing touches on a doodle of the newest espresso drink on her menu board when she heard the chimes by the door. It was Matsumoto Jun in a fancy suit, Aiba Masaki at his heels. Jun looked at her and pointed to his watch. "Fifteen minutes," was all the manager said before heading back out the door.
She felt herself blush as Aiba walked over to the bar counter with his cheerful smile. He'd been sending her emails for a few weeks, checking up on her with cheerful, flirty messages full of strange misspellings. But it was the first time she'd laid eyes on him since the night in the cabin.
"You're not here for a fortune, are you?" she asked him. "Because as you well know, I'm kind of a fraud."
His drama had just finished airing, and he looked far healthier and happier. "Why don't you brew a cup for yourself, on me. I mean, if anyone can go around pretending to be a fortune teller, it can't hurt if I give it a go, right?"
She only nodded, feeling his warm, kind eyes watching her as she brewed herself a cup. While she drank, he told her he was taking a break from acting for a while. He'd be focusing more on his comedy and variety work with his partner Yokoyama since they'd been offered their own show in a late night timeslot. While not as glamorous or high profile as his drama, he seemed rather content with the concept. He didn't bother asking her for advice either.
Instead he held out his hand when she had drained the cup, still smiling his gorgeous smile. "Come on, let me read your fortune."
"There's a trick to it," she said. "It's all about confidence. I heard that if you believe in yourself, others will undoubtedly believe in you."
He grabbed the cup and started to pace the floor of the shop, walking between the tables. She came out from behind the counter, standing there patiently while he launched into a theatrical reading of her fortune.
"I envision great things for you, Becky," Aiba announced with a flourish. "But that's to be expected of someone smart and pretty and wonderful like you..."
She shook her head. "Skip the flattery, get to the fortune," she said huffily, though hearing the words 'Becky' and 'smart' and 'pretty' in the same sentence coming from the lips of the guy she really liked was enough to make her giddy.
He approached her then, trapping her between himself and her bar counter. He set the cup down and looked her right in the eye. "I don't think you're a fraud. And I wasn't lying back then when I said I wanted you to be my good luck charm, that I wanted you near me. I just didn't realize how much."
He moved closer, slipping his arms around her. He was solid and strong, and she didn't need a crystal ball (real or fake) to see how enamored he was with her.
"I needed you then, but not as much as I need you now." He giggled in embarrassment. "That is, if you'll have me, of course."
She grinned at him. "Well, what did my coffee cup say? What's my future?"
He kissed her for the first time as sunshine bounced off her crystals to send dozens of rainbows all around the walls of her shop. And, Becky decided as she lost herself in Aiba's embrace, it was better than any vision.