The Diary - Chapter 8
I'm pretty damn quick, but I'm getting tired. It's unusual for me, coz I don't go to bed till after 12. Can't sleep until the early morning normally, but Its 10pm and I'm already wanting to sleep. Probably want though, but just in case I'll post Chapter 8 now.
When Sachi came to, he was still in the same position he’d been in when he hit the floor. He opened his eyes and blinked rapidly, trying to make the blurry basement become clearer. He groaned and began to sit up before realising he had help.
“I’m so sorry,” Kiyoko said in a tiny voice. “I thought you were that other boy. The one who comes down here to hurt me.”
“It’s okay,” Sachi whispered in a raspy voice.
“I’d offer to give you some water, but no one’s been down here to give me anything in a couple of days.”
“What?” he asked in disbelief. “Yuya hasn’t been down here?”
“No. When that other man came down, he told me Yuya wasn’t going to bring me anything until I learned to behave.”
“What did you do?”
Kiyoko looked away. “He tried to force me to... do stuff to him... he made touch his...” tears filled her eyes and she shook her head, trying to rid herself of the images. He turned around to stroke her cheek. She took a deep breath and finished her sentence.
“When I refused, he grabbed my hand and put it... down there... he told me what to do, but I tried to get away. So when he put my hand down there again, I grabbed it really tight...it brought him to knees, and I took that chance to try and run away again... but he’d locked the door.”
“Still being defiant,” Sachi whispered, smiling. “I’m proud of you. Don’t ever let them see you in a weak state. Always fight back.”
“You should be telling me not to fight back, because they’ll hurt me even more.”
“They’ll hurt you, but they haven’t broken you yet, have they?”
“No,” she replied, and then she leaned into him and placed her head on his shoulder. “But it’s all getting to me. I’m going crazy down here. I need to get out of here soon, or else I’m going to give up hope.”
Sachi took her face in his hands and gently placed his lips on hers. She began to move away, but his persistence paid off, and soon she was leaning in, her lips finally responsive. He pulled away and gazed into her eyes. They were shining with tears, and her lips had curved into a frown. She sat back and wiped the tears from her eyes.
“Thank you,” she whispered. “Thank you for being a friend to me when no one else has. Even Yuya’s turned her back on me.”
“No she hasn’t,” Sachi protested. “It must have just been something Heiji said to try to make you do disgusting things. Don’t ever believe the things he says. It’s all lies.”
Kiyoko nudged her way into his arms and put her head on his shoulder again. “And I’m sorry again for hurting you.”
“It’s okay, you’re forgiven.”
Sachi put his arms around Kiyoko and held her tightly to him. “I’m going to hate letting you go.”
“Then don’t,” she whispered, closing her eyes.
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Heiji knocked on Eichi’s door, waiting impatiently for a response. Finally, he heard a muffled reply and opened the door. He saw Yuya wrapping a blanket around herself before hurrying to the adjoining bathroom. Eichi was buttoning a pair of pants and making his way to one of the seats near the bed.
“What do you want, Heiji?” Eichi asked, pulling a cigarette from a packet and lighting it.
“Just wanted to let you know that Sachi’s adjusting to this pretty well,” Heiji replied, smiling widely and sitting down on an empty seat.
“Oh?” Eichi’s eyes glinted; his interest was piqued.
“Yeah. I was planning on having a little fun with the girl in the basement, but Sachi told me to back off, saying he’d take care of her himself.”
Eichi took a drag of his cigarette and smiled as he laid his head back against the chair. “That’s good. I was afraid he was gonna wimp out on us. We can’t have that happening.”
“So did I,” Heiji agreed, helping himself to a cigarette. “But he seemed pretty mad today. Something’s bugging him. That’s probably why he finally decided to do something. That girl’s good to vent your anger on. She just lays there and takes whatever you give her.”
“Really?” Eichi asked, his interest piqued again. He flicked the lighter for Heiji, and looked in the direction of the bathroom where Yuya had disappeared.
“Maybe I’ll have a go. If Sachi finds her so appealing, maybe I will too.”
From the inside of the bathroom, Yuya had her ear to the door, listening to every word they said. She widened her eyes when Eichi uttered his last words. She slid down the door, and suddenly realised she was crying. She wiped them away quickly and listened to the rest of their conversation.
“Is Sachi done with her?” came Eichi’s voice.
“Yeah, he came up from the basement about fifteen minutes ago. Why, thinking of going down?”
“Hmm, maybe.”
Yuya felt like slamming something against the wall. She took a deep breath, and realised that she wasn’t jealous of what Eichi was saying. She was angry that all he wanted to do was hurt Kiyoko. She was a sweet girl, and Sachi was right: she didn’t deserve what was happening to her.
“Yuya!” Eichi cried out. Yuya froze, afraid he was going to come into the bathroom. His voice sounded very close.
She stood up, wiped her face and opened the door. “What?”
“Good, you’re dressed,” he remarked. “Go get a tray ready and take it down the girl.”
“Her name’s Kiyoko,” Yuya murmured as she brushed past him. Eichi grabbed her arm and spun her around, gripping her shoulders tightly. “What did you say to me?”
“I said her name is Kiyoko. At least give her enough respect to call her by her name. She’s not worthless.”
Eichi pulled her in for a rough kiss, before pushing her away roughly. “Since when did you get a mouth on you? Go and get her a tray, and don’t argue with me again, or you can go and sit down there with her.”
Yuya glared at him before leaving the room. She made her way to the kitchen and began making some tea and filling a jug with water. As she prepared Kiyoko’s lunch, she felt a presence in the room. She was expecting to find Sachi, but two hands sliding around her waist told her it wasn’t him.
“What do you think you’re doing, getting smart with Eichi?” Heiji whispered in her ear.
“I wasn’t being smart. I was just telling him that Kiyoko has a name,” Yuya retorted, pulling away from him and moving to the fridge.
Yuya began to feel uncomfortable with the way that Heiji was staring at her. She finally got fed up and spun around to face him, eyeing him angrily.
“What do you want, Heiji?”
“I was just going to ask whether or not you heard our little conversation upstairs. I’m sure you did. How do you feel about Eichi taking a turn with Kiyoko?”
“I don’t really care. He can do whatever the hell he wants; I just hate seeing her get hurt. She’s been through enough and now she’s being ravaged by you animals.”
“We’re animals?” Heiji repeated, moving forward and pressing Yuya into him. “Do you really mean that, or are you just jealous that you haven’t gotten enough attention since she showed up?”
“Get off me,” Yuya spat, pulling away from again and putting a glass on Kiyoko’s tray. “Stop trying to piss me off, and stay out of my way.”
Heiji tapped her behind swiftly as she passed him, laughing at her mockingly. Suddenly, Yuya turned and hurled the glass from the tray at his head. He ducked behind a counter and watched as it hit the wall, showering shards of glass onto the floor. He stood up and smiled licentiously at her.
“I think you’re jealous. Don’t worry, you’ll learn to share. Eichi’s getting real curious about Kiyoko, you know.”
Yuya grabbed another glass and practically ran from the kitchen. She made her way to the basement, but before she entered, she leant against it, using one hand to wipe the tears from her eyes.
“I’m not jealous,” she muttered. “I despise you idiots. All of you sicken me.”
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“All these boys have been charged with minor crimes before,” Junzo explained, entering Hitoshi’s office. Hitoshi took the folders from Junzo’s hands and placed them on his desk, spreading them out.
“Write down these addresses, Ishibashi,” Hitoshi commanded. “We’re going to visit each of their homes. Hopefully, they’ll have been stupid enough to hide her in one of their houses.”
“They all look like the type. And considering how Maruyama said that the victim had no connection whatsoever to any of these boys, I’d say they were just planning on having some fun. They wouldn’t have gone into so much detail with the kidnapping.”
“It’s a sick idea of fun,” Hitoshi growled, clenching his fists. “Let’s not tell Mr. Hisamatsu that we’re going anyway. He was good for intimidating that snitch, but I don’t think he’ll be of help when he sees those boys. He’s too emotionally involved in this case; he could cause trouble if he knew of their whereabouts.”
“He’s not that stupid, sir,” Junzo replied. “He just wants his daughter back. He wouldn’t go to such lengths though.”
“Can you be sure?” Hitoshi asked, sitting down and putting his head in his hands. “If my daughter went missing, I’d want the heads of the bastards who did it.”
Junzo said nothing, and instead sat down opposite Hitoshi and began opening the files to record the addresses.
“Where will we start?” Junzo asked as he wrote, not looking at Hitoshi.
“We’ll start with the Eichi Kuramoto boy. He’s been charged with the most crimes, although they’re all minor. He seems like he’d be the mastermind behind the operation.”
“How can you tell?”
Hitoshi looked at the photo of Eichi Kuramoto. He had a sly smile, and his eyes glinted mischievously. “I’m only guessing. But he just looks the part.”
Junzo nodded and finished writing down the last address. “Got them all.”
They both stood, and Junzo quickly collected the files as Hitoshi left the office ahead of the other. He was practically in a rush to get started. They’d finally found a lead, and this time, they weren’t going to let anyone down. They were going to find this girl, and they were going to do it soon. Her family had waited long enough.
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When Sachi came to, he was still in the same position he’d been in when he hit the floor. He opened his eyes and blinked rapidly, trying to make the blurry basement become clearer. He groaned and began to sit up before realising he had help.
“I’m so sorry,” Kiyoko said in a tiny voice. “I thought you were that other boy. The one who comes down here to hurt me.”
“It’s okay,” Sachi whispered in a raspy voice.
“I’d offer to give you some water, but no one’s been down here to give me anything in a couple of days.”
“What?” he asked in disbelief. “Yuya hasn’t been down here?”
“No. When that other man came down, he told me Yuya wasn’t going to bring me anything until I learned to behave.”
“What did you do?”
Kiyoko looked away. “He tried to force me to... do stuff to him... he made touch his...” tears filled her eyes and she shook her head, trying to rid herself of the images. He turned around to stroke her cheek. She took a deep breath and finished her sentence.
“When I refused, he grabbed my hand and put it... down there... he told me what to do, but I tried to get away. So when he put my hand down there again, I grabbed it really tight...it brought him to knees, and I took that chance to try and run away again... but he’d locked the door.”
“Still being defiant,” Sachi whispered, smiling. “I’m proud of you. Don’t ever let them see you in a weak state. Always fight back.”
“You should be telling me not to fight back, because they’ll hurt me even more.”
“They’ll hurt you, but they haven’t broken you yet, have they?”
“No,” she replied, and then she leaned into him and placed her head on his shoulder. “But it’s all getting to me. I’m going crazy down here. I need to get out of here soon, or else I’m going to give up hope.”
Sachi took her face in his hands and gently placed his lips on hers. She began to move away, but his persistence paid off, and soon she was leaning in, her lips finally responsive. He pulled away and gazed into her eyes. They were shining with tears, and her lips had curved into a frown. She sat back and wiped the tears from her eyes.
“Thank you,” she whispered. “Thank you for being a friend to me when no one else has. Even Yuya’s turned her back on me.”
“No she hasn’t,” Sachi protested. “It must have just been something Heiji said to try to make you do disgusting things. Don’t ever believe the things he says. It’s all lies.”
Kiyoko nudged her way into his arms and put her head on his shoulder again. “And I’m sorry again for hurting you.”
“It’s okay, you’re forgiven.”
Sachi put his arms around Kiyoko and held her tightly to him. “I’m going to hate letting you go.”
“Then don’t,” she whispered, closing her eyes.
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Heiji knocked on Eichi’s door, waiting impatiently for a response. Finally, he heard a muffled reply and opened the door. He saw Yuya wrapping a blanket around herself before hurrying to the adjoining bathroom. Eichi was buttoning a pair of pants and making his way to one of the seats near the bed.
“What do you want, Heiji?” Eichi asked, pulling a cigarette from a packet and lighting it.
“Just wanted to let you know that Sachi’s adjusting to this pretty well,” Heiji replied, smiling widely and sitting down on an empty seat.
“Oh?” Eichi’s eyes glinted; his interest was piqued.
“Yeah. I was planning on having a little fun with the girl in the basement, but Sachi told me to back off, saying he’d take care of her himself.”
Eichi took a drag of his cigarette and smiled as he laid his head back against the chair. “That’s good. I was afraid he was gonna wimp out on us. We can’t have that happening.”
“So did I,” Heiji agreed, helping himself to a cigarette. “But he seemed pretty mad today. Something’s bugging him. That’s probably why he finally decided to do something. That girl’s good to vent your anger on. She just lays there and takes whatever you give her.”
“Really?” Eichi asked, his interest piqued again. He flicked the lighter for Heiji, and looked in the direction of the bathroom where Yuya had disappeared.
“Maybe I’ll have a go. If Sachi finds her so appealing, maybe I will too.”
From the inside of the bathroom, Yuya had her ear to the door, listening to every word they said. She widened her eyes when Eichi uttered his last words. She slid down the door, and suddenly realised she was crying. She wiped them away quickly and listened to the rest of their conversation.
“Is Sachi done with her?” came Eichi’s voice.
“Yeah, he came up from the basement about fifteen minutes ago. Why, thinking of going down?”
“Hmm, maybe.”
Yuya felt like slamming something against the wall. She took a deep breath, and realised that she wasn’t jealous of what Eichi was saying. She was angry that all he wanted to do was hurt Kiyoko. She was a sweet girl, and Sachi was right: she didn’t deserve what was happening to her.
“Yuya!” Eichi cried out. Yuya froze, afraid he was going to come into the bathroom. His voice sounded very close.
She stood up, wiped her face and opened the door. “What?”
“Good, you’re dressed,” he remarked. “Go get a tray ready and take it down the girl.”
“Her name’s Kiyoko,” Yuya murmured as she brushed past him. Eichi grabbed her arm and spun her around, gripping her shoulders tightly. “What did you say to me?”
“I said her name is Kiyoko. At least give her enough respect to call her by her name. She’s not worthless.”
Eichi pulled her in for a rough kiss, before pushing her away roughly. “Since when did you get a mouth on you? Go and get her a tray, and don’t argue with me again, or you can go and sit down there with her.”
Yuya glared at him before leaving the room. She made her way to the kitchen and began making some tea and filling a jug with water. As she prepared Kiyoko’s lunch, she felt a presence in the room. She was expecting to find Sachi, but two hands sliding around her waist told her it wasn’t him.
“What do you think you’re doing, getting smart with Eichi?” Heiji whispered in her ear.
“I wasn’t being smart. I was just telling him that Kiyoko has a name,” Yuya retorted, pulling away from him and moving to the fridge.
Yuya began to feel uncomfortable with the way that Heiji was staring at her. She finally got fed up and spun around to face him, eyeing him angrily.
“What do you want, Heiji?”
“I was just going to ask whether or not you heard our little conversation upstairs. I’m sure you did. How do you feel about Eichi taking a turn with Kiyoko?”
“I don’t really care. He can do whatever the hell he wants; I just hate seeing her get hurt. She’s been through enough and now she’s being ravaged by you animals.”
“We’re animals?” Heiji repeated, moving forward and pressing Yuya into him. “Do you really mean that, or are you just jealous that you haven’t gotten enough attention since she showed up?”
“Get off me,” Yuya spat, pulling away from again and putting a glass on Kiyoko’s tray. “Stop trying to piss me off, and stay out of my way.”
Heiji tapped her behind swiftly as she passed him, laughing at her mockingly. Suddenly, Yuya turned and hurled the glass from the tray at his head. He ducked behind a counter and watched as it hit the wall, showering shards of glass onto the floor. He stood up and smiled licentiously at her.
“I think you’re jealous. Don’t worry, you’ll learn to share. Eichi’s getting real curious about Kiyoko, you know.”
Yuya grabbed another glass and practically ran from the kitchen. She made her way to the basement, but before she entered, she leant against it, using one hand to wipe the tears from her eyes.
“I’m not jealous,” she muttered. “I despise you idiots. All of you sicken me.”
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“All these boys have been charged with minor crimes before,” Junzo explained, entering Hitoshi’s office. Hitoshi took the folders from Junzo’s hands and placed them on his desk, spreading them out.
“Write down these addresses, Ishibashi,” Hitoshi commanded. “We’re going to visit each of their homes. Hopefully, they’ll have been stupid enough to hide her in one of their houses.”
“They all look like the type. And considering how Maruyama said that the victim had no connection whatsoever to any of these boys, I’d say they were just planning on having some fun. They wouldn’t have gone into so much detail with the kidnapping.”
“It’s a sick idea of fun,” Hitoshi growled, clenching his fists. “Let’s not tell Mr. Hisamatsu that we’re going anyway. He was good for intimidating that snitch, but I don’t think he’ll be of help when he sees those boys. He’s too emotionally involved in this case; he could cause trouble if he knew of their whereabouts.”
“He’s not that stupid, sir,” Junzo replied. “He just wants his daughter back. He wouldn’t go to such lengths though.”
“Can you be sure?” Hitoshi asked, sitting down and putting his head in his hands. “If my daughter went missing, I’d want the heads of the bastards who did it.”
Junzo said nothing, and instead sat down opposite Hitoshi and began opening the files to record the addresses.
“Where will we start?” Junzo asked as he wrote, not looking at Hitoshi.
“We’ll start with the Eichi Kuramoto boy. He’s been charged with the most crimes, although they’re all minor. He seems like he’d be the mastermind behind the operation.”
“How can you tell?”
Hitoshi looked at the photo of Eichi Kuramoto. He had a sly smile, and his eyes glinted mischievously. “I’m only guessing. But he just looks the part.”
Junzo nodded and finished writing down the last address. “Got them all.”
They both stood, and Junzo quickly collected the files as Hitoshi left the office ahead of the other. He was practically in a rush to get started. They’d finally found a lead, and this time, they weren’t going to let anyone down. They were going to find this girl, and they were going to do it soon. Her family had waited long enough.
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