The dart sliced through the air, piercing into the board. Imo yelped before ‘ooo’ing in awe.
“Just a 3!” Imo announced, pointing to the dart’s placement near the white ring’s border, just inches away from touching the outer black ring. The small crowd clapped and nodded. “That’s actually amazing!”
Ah. No murder charges—damn, her grip on that is strong.
“Holy, you nailed that!” Jacque fist-bumped and hugged her. “First try, too!”
“Uh, yeah, of course I would,” Maine said, lowering the pipe with a smirk. “This isn’t that hard. Breathing well is something everyone can do, yes?”
“The deep breathing practice you have to do”—Imo plucked the dart out with ease—”before a shot is essential in better performance, so you managing this without it is pretty impressive—”
“Yeah, yeah, I—”
“—but you did use a 50cm pipe, and you’d usually use 120cm for the actual—”
“120?”
“—competitive sport—yes, 120. 50 is basically for home practice—ooo, target was about 3m to 4m away, and that’s usually a good 10m if you’re being serious—”
“10?”
“—about the art—you’re a beginner, so don’t sweat! Don’t sweat at all!” Imo gave Maine a bright smile as she walked to her, and that ticked her off.
So I just did the bare minimum or something…
Maine tutted. “Right—”
“Sorry to interrupt, but”—Min held Maine’s shoulders—”we really have to get to cheer, Imo, so—”
“Oh—of course—”
“—we have to be quick—sorry—”
“No, no, it’s fine! Thank you for staying—”
“Yeah, just take, see ya,” Maine said, pushing the blowpipe into Imo’s hands. She scowled and stormed off, her two friends and Jacque following behind. The crowd started to disperse and go back to their lives as she did so. “This was a huge time waste—thanks for no—”
“Uh—wait, if you’re stressed about not getting it well the first—my clan’s holding a meetup tomorrow—”
“Who said I’m stressed?” Maine stopped to glare at her. “Because I can’t be an expert at a stupid blowgun?” She continued walking.
“Well—”
“I don’t spitball because I wanna get paid for it—you’re delusional—”
Imo frowned and huffed. “Follow ‘fukiya.clan’! We’re holding a clan meetup tomorrow—”
“Good for you—”
“—afternoon and have some free tasty Japanese food—”
“Good for you—”
“—for everyone that wants to join—chill as well—”
“Oh my gosh—that emo is bratty,” Maine murmured, cringing as she picked up on Imo trying her best to still advertise her clan.
Iona nodded. “I think she jumped to conclusions—”
“Hmm, right—”
“—too quickly—like, girl, blowing air out of your head is medicine, not a sport—”
“Iona, I swear to God—”
“—sorry, sorry, I had that”—she dodged Maine’s swipe with a chuckle—”at the back of my head for a while—it was cooking up—stop!”
Maine got a hold of her and pinched her wrist, the girl trying to do it back to no avail. Though, as she did so, she let Iona’s words linger in her mind.
“Good thing this didn’t turn into some big beef—just seemed more goofy honestly,” Min said, walking the fastest as she checked her phone. “Unecessary fighting just fries your brain, Maine—”
“Then you stop doomscrolling on Trill—”
“No.”
Maine tutted and looked at the ground in thought, Min’s words piling onto her head.
Fry, huh… What is she even talking about?
Y’know…
Maine sighed, looking up from the map app on her phone and staring up at a tall apartment complex.
I always knew that I was a big fan of contemporary ninjas…
“Yeah, this is it.” Maine folded her arms, wiping sweat off her forehead with her shoulder. “Wonder if she ordered Japanese from Waka. At least she would have the slightest of taste.”
Yep… Always been a fan of…
“Waka would be so good,” Jacque said, tying his laces and standing straight. “I’m addicted to their gyozas!”
“And the beef bowls—mmm!” Maine clapped. “Freaking class.”
She better have ordered beef bowls.
“Alrighty, time to get this over with,” Maine said. She kissed Jacque’s sharp chin. “Thank you for walking me here, love!” She began walking off. “I’ll be—”
“No prob, babe!” Jacque followed.
Maine froze and tilted her head at him, furrowing her brows. Jacque hummed in confusion.
“Where are you going?” Maine asked.
Jacque brushed through his brown locks. “With you, silly.”
Unauthorized tale usage: if you spot this story on Amazon, report the violation.
“But…” Maine squinted, looking to the side before looking at him. “But you—”
“I said I was coming with—”
“—said that you were just escorting me—huh?”
“Huh.”
They laughed awkwardly.
“How did you mistranslate what I said?” Jacque asked.
“But I thought…” Maine smiled. “I don’t mind if you come with me obviously—I’ll definitely need it—”
“Of course!” Jacque hugged her as they walked, moving out of the way as a taxi drove into the complex’s small driveway. “We bulk together!”
“Always,” Maine said, leaning against him. They garnered quick stares from passerby, giving more pride to Maine’s smile. “She better not bring up anything about blowpi—”
“Wait—sorry, babe—look—”
“Hmm? What is it?”
Maine looked at the direction Jacque nodded at, where a spectacled guy in a ninja outfit hopped out of a taxi heaving a long wooden pipe out of the car.
“Thank you, have a great day,” the guy said kindly, inching away from the taxi as it drove away. He swung the pipe over his shoulder and used his other hand to tap something on his phone.
Jacque grinned. “If it isn’t Ned!”
The guy shivered and drooped at Jacque’s voice.
“Know him?” Maine asked.
“He’s a big nerd!” Jacque sped off to Ned, slinging his arm around the clearly reluctant guy. “He’s pretty new and he helps a lot with AP Math—”
Ned groaned. “I guess—”
“—and he’s a pretty damn knowledgeable on many businesses and restaurant chains—”
“Yeah, when I get pushed for lunch money, I have to put you fools onto some affordable restaurants—”
“Haha—”
“—so ya stop hounding me—”
“He’s pretty much part of the boys now, Maine!”
“One of y’all gave me a wedgie.” Ned adjusted his specs with a sneer. “Let’s not forget slapping my butt with a towel in the changing room—you people are too much—”
Jacque laughed. “What’s wrong with that?”
Maine blinked, watching them bicker with her arms crossed.
Is… Is this a friendshi—the hell is this?
“Sorry—you’re sweating like hell,” Ned said, inching away from Jacque. He eyed the larger man’s basketball attire and Maine’s cheerleading outfit. “Anyways, do you people live here?”
“We’re for a fukiya meeting,” Jacque answered, hugging his girlfriend and bringing her into the conversation.
Ned groaned again. “Ah, same—”
“By the way, this is my girl, Maine!”
“Ah, the girlfriend you never shut up about—but seriously, nice to meet ya.” Ned extended a hand.
“Of course I can never shut up about her—look at her!”
Maine tried her best to hide her smile, awkwardly shaking Ned’s hand and quickly withdrawing and folding her arms again. “Yes, here for the Japanese food and all that.”
They continued walking.
“Imo got you people, huh?” Ned sighed. “She’s too eccentric.”
Look at a mirror, nerd.
Ned checked his dark clean-cut hair in his phone’s camera.
Huh.
“Have you been part of this for a while?” Jacque asked.
“Uh, yeah, I guess.” Ned swung the long pipe forward, putting his phone into his pocket. “I’ve been slowly getting into CNM culture over the last few years—yes, I’ve known Imo from another school.”
“Oh, dang, cool, cool.” Jacque pointed to Ned’s pipe. “And they get that big?”
“Yep, this ain’t no small or medium.” Ned knocked on the pipe’s wood with a confident smile. “Can endure some powerful blows and give some back as well. Made from a good manufacturer.”
Maine smirked dryly.
Gosh… This is gonna be boring.
They walked into the complex’s lobby after an inhabitant allowed them to walk in without a keycard. They approached the lifts.
“Did you guys come all the way from college?” Ned pressed the up button.
“Jogged here.”
“Hmm. That’s intense—oops, sorry.” Ned swerved around people swarming out of the elevator, ensuring his weapon didn’t smack any of them in the face.
“You jog too?”
“Eh, sometimes. I gym once a week.”
“Fair.”
The three entered the lift with another who swiped their keycard and pressed on the 7th floor’s button.
“Never took you for a gym guy.”
Ned tutted. “Look at me. I have to—oh, how are you doing, Ezra?”
The other guy in the lift turned to Ned. “Not too bad. You?”
“Alright.”
“Nice.”
Silence. The numbers on the screen ticked up slowly.
Maine pursed her lips and sighed.
“Imo’s gonna freak,” Ezra said, shoving his hands into his hoodie pockets.
Ned hummed.
“Fresh meat.” Ezra let out a small laugh, Ned joining him.
Maine blinked, scratching her hair.
Creeps… But I understand. I’m hungry as well.
The elevator dinged, the doors sliding open.
They walked down the carpeted hallway for a bit. Maine picked up on a savory smell and hugged Jacque’s arm.
I smell beef!
“72…” Ned murmured, knocking on the door.
The sounds of pots and pans clashing stopped as quick footsteps came from the other side of the door.
“Ah, welcome, welcome! You actually came, Mai—”
In the blink of an eye, Imo held a small blowgun to her lips.
Maine’s anticipated smile fell.
Huh…?
Jacque pushed himself and Maine to the side with a grunt as Imo shot a dart towards Ned. With a flip of his pipe, he sidestepped the dart and knocked it to the floor. It was a rubber dart.
“Wow, that one was fast, Imo,” Ned said.
“Why did you people lead this man here?” Imo asked, her jolly expression falling into a sour one.
“Are you trying to kill us, emo?” Maine roared.
“I’m trying to kill him.” Imo loaded her blowgun with another dart.
“Wait? Why?” Jacque asked, his face blank. “Isn’t he a part of your cla—”
“Do you see him holding a fukiya?” Imo asked.
Maine and Jacque looked at Ned’s pipe.
Jacque hummed. “But they get long like you sai—”
“That’s a freakin’ bō staff!”
Maine and Jacque wrinkled their faces.
Huh?
“I told you, Jacque.” Ned adjusted his glasses. “Me and her come from two different schools. The Bō clan—my superior clan—”
“No it ain’t—”
“—and the Fukiya clan are opps.”
Huh? He was just some normal… some nerd a few seconds ago…
“He’s probably here to challenge us again,” Imo said.
“W—Wait, but why all the hate?” Jacque asked innocently.
Imo and Ned glared at Jacque.
“What do you think?” Imo hissed, whipping out a long fukiya.
“Our clans are too similar!” Ned pointed at his staff. “Our weapons of choice are basically the same!”
“No they’re damn not!” Maine barked.
“Let’s get this over with so you can leave my home,” Imo said, holding her fukiya up.
“This complex ain’t owned by you, idiot,” Ned said, spinning his staff around.
They threw more trash talk at one another. Maine looked up at Jacque, who seemed lost in their fighting.
She sighed, feeling that she had burst too many vessels in the past two days.
I wanna eat so bad…