Chapter 6: Complexity

Mai couldn't stop getting her eyes off the new client that just came through the door.

It wasn't her fault, really. Everyone would be doing the same if they were in her shoes.

Nohara Kasumi, the most beautiful and successful actress in the entertainment industry just stepped through the door of the SPR office, wearing the plainest clothes that could almost rival Mai as she took off her big sunglasses that covered half her face. It didn't take long for Mai to realize who she was staring at, and once she did, her chair fell back onto the ground and her shouts began.

"Nohara Kasumi! It's-It's really Nohara Kasumi!" Mai exclaimed her name out loud like she was announcing to the whole world. She would have, if she could scream any louder. It wasn't an everyday thing to see such a famous person on a normal day like this, and of all places too.

Before Mai could shout further, Naru's door opened and he walked down the corridor and to the main room with a frown on his face.

"I can hear you from my office, Mai."

Mai pointed at Kasumi and gave an exasperated look. "It's Nohara Kasumi! Don't you recognize her?!"

Naru cast an uninterested glance over at the actress, who just gave a shy smile at Mai's excitement.

"Is there something you want here?"

"You must be Kazuya Shibuya. You're indeed young like what my manager said. He recommended me here, and I want your service."

He gestured her over to the sofa while Mai quickly skipped over to the kitchen to prepare a cup of tea for the client. There wasn't really a choice of beverages, it was either red tea, black tea, green tea... all kinds of tea but not coffee or milk or juices. It didn't matter anyway, most of the clients didn't even bother drinking what was given to them most of the time; they were more focused on retelling their stories and explaining their cases.

When Mai arrived with the tea and handed over to Kasumi, it seemed like they haven't start the conversation at all.

"Thank you." She took a polite sip before setting it on the glass table and looked at Naru who was sitting opposite of her.

'Oh my God, she's really pretty! Even in real life!' Mai tried to urge every nerve of her body to stop herself from asking for an autograph. Instead, she tried to calm herself down and stood next to the sofa where Naru was sitting.

Naru finally began. "So what is it that you need my service?" He sounded nonchalant to others who didn't know him, but Mai could tell from her experience of working here for the few weeks. He was feeling a little impatient already. Mai sighed inwardly.

Kasumi tentatively glanced over at Mai before looking back at Naru. "Are you sure every piece of information I tell you will be kept confidential?"

"Yes."

"I'm rather famous in Japan." Kasumi gave a sheepish smile, which was contagious enough to make Mai chuckle to herself too. Naru wasn't amused at anything. "I want to make sure this incident receive as little attention as possible. Even my presence here, I've disguised myself for that."

"I can tell." Naru said.

"You see, my husband-"

"Husband?!"

Naru closed his eyes and sighed before he flicked his gaze over at Mai, who was covering her mouth with both hands after her sudden outburst.

"Sorry." She gave a muffled reply.

Kasumi pursed her lips and Mai knew she had done something wrong again. Not knowing how to clear her mess this time, she noted her boss straightening his posture, intentionally gaining their attention.

"She's Taniyama Mai. My assistant. Loud and eccentric, but trustworthy. You don't have to worry."

Mai wanted to go against his words, but she stopped herself. At least he defended her, or rather, saved his own potential income by saying that lie. It wasn't exactly a lie; she already signed a job contract about keeping everything job-related confidential outside of work, so this could regard her as trustworthy in Naru's eyes. But the former proclamation of his... so all along, she was eccentric to him?!

Kasumi pushed the few strands of hair to the back of her ear and sighed. "Yes, I'm married. My manager kept it under the wraps very well, which is what I'm very grateful for." She bit her lips. "I wouldn't even be here if my husband wasn't missing for two whole days."

"Two whole days." Naru echoed as he entwined his fingers together.

"Yes. I called him, texted him, asked my manager and the few people who knew of our relationship to help to look for him, but the efforts were fruitless." Kasumi's eyes wavered. "This never happen before. He never disappear on me like this. Something must have happened to him."

"You should report to the police." Naru leaned back on his sofa casually.

Mai furrowed her brows. This wasn't the first time Naru brushed off cases so easily when the potential client barely explained for ten minutes. Mai often just let it go because she felt that the alternatives he suggested was perhaps much better than having to pay him a few hundred thousands of dollars, like what happened to her. But this time, she couldn't let it go.

"Didn't you understand? She is married secretly. She can't report to the police like that."

"She can, if she repeats her actions and asks her manager or the people who knew about this secret to report it." Naru gave a pointed look over at Mai before he stood up from his seat. "My best suggestion is for you to leave this case to the police."

"I understand your point." Kasumi muttered as she flung up from her seat. "But there's something that I can't let the police be involved in."

Naru tilted his head. "If you want my service, I expect every bits of information to be revealed at one go. If not, you're just going to waste my time."

Mai rolled her eyes and pinched the bridge of her nose. He really needed some advice and lessons on communication and manners. At least he wasn't fake and acted differently based on the people he was with; He never change his way of speaking or level of respect to anyone, even if it is an ordinary person or a famous and wealthy person like Kasumi, and Mai got to give him credit for that. Still, he needed to change that stinky attitude of his.

"My husband's name is Arima Toshi. And Toshi, he-" Kasumi lowered her gaze. "He's drug addict."

Her chocolate brown eyes were able to fall out any moment. "D-Drug addict?"

"Yes." Kasumi shut her eyes painfully. "He's trying to kick his habit for the past year, and it's working. Still, he is a drug addict. I can't let him be involved with the police. Not now when I don't know where he is!"

Naru sat back on his seat again and Mai squealed inwardly. That was a good sign.

"Tell me more about the past two days when you realized your husband disappeared."

Kasumi slumped onto her seat too. "I wasn't home all day because of my schedules so I didn't know what he did in the morning or afternoon. We usually sent texts to each other, but everything was normal. He still text me like how he always did."

"Don't you ask about what he do?" Mai raised an eyebrow.

That brief look of shock didn't go unnoticed to Mai, or Naru. "Well, he didn't say, so I didn't ask."

"And then?" Naru prompted.

"After my shoot, I came back home but he wasn't anywhere to be found. I tried calling him, and he didn't answer too. I thought maybe he went out to buy food because that's what he usually do in the middle of the night. But I didn't wait up and slept because I was too tired."

Kasumi twiddled her thumb. "The next morning, I realized I was already late for another shoot. I quickly prepared myself and I didn't have the time to check if Toshi was at home. But that day, I received no calls, no texts from him and when night came, he wasn't even at home. That's when I knew something was wrong."

Naru eyed Kasumi. "You don't know about his activities, his friends, what he usually does in the afternoon while you're at work?"

"He works as a bartender in the past. He quitted after he married me." Kasumi paused and then glanced away, realizing she had nothing else to say.

"That's all?" Mai couldn't help but blurted out.

Before Kasumi could reply, Naru butt in. "Tell me how you two met."

That caught Mai by surprise. She sometimes doubted that Naru know the word love existed. Based on looks, Mai would regretfully put him at the top of her list, but based on the traits of how a romantic guy should act, Naru was definitely the last.

So when Mai heard him ask that question, it made her giggle inside. She knew he was asking for investigation purpose and not because he wanted to know personally, but still...

"We met in the bar, the one he worked at. In one of my movies, I acted as a bartender too." Kasumi's lips tugged at the memory. "He taught me all the tricks and skills to be one, and that was when I fell in love with him. We kept in contact even after the shoot and we got together. And then, married."

Mai remembered that movie Kasumi was talking about. She watched it with Keiko and Michiru when they were in their first year of high school.

Naru nodded curtly. "I'll give you a call when there's a lead."

Kasumi straightened her posture. "You mean you'll accept my case?"

"It's worth investigating."

She quickly fished out her name-card from her pocket and passed it to Naru. "Here's my name-card. Please, please contact me when you have any news of him. My manager will contact you regarding the deposit and contract details, I need to go first; I'm in the middle of a shoot."

Naru didn't spare a second glance at the card and place it back on the table. "We'll keep in touch."

"Thank you. In case you forget, I want to remind you to keep this as low-profile as possible." Knowing that her message was clear, Kasumi headed for the door. Without a second spared, she swiftly put back her sunglasses on and messed her beautiful silky hair for a better disguise before she walked out of the office.

When Kasumi was gone, Mai hopped over to the table and picked the name-card to her nose.

"It smells of her perfume."

"You look idiotic."

"Who cares? It's Nohara Kasumi!" Mai waved the card in her hand. "Anyway, I doubt you need this anyway, since you're superb in getting her contact information in your own way. I shall keep this as a souvenir." She quickly pocketed it into her jeans before Naru changed his mind.

He didn't even look at her. Instead, he flipped through a few pieces of papers he picked up from Mai's desk, which was in the process of being filed. "I want you to call John."

Her lips twitched into a smile. "Yes!"

"And after you do that, I want tea in my office."

Mai shook her head. 'Tea, tea and tea again.'

"I'm not asking for your permission, Mai." Naru placed the papers back on her table.

She rolled her eyes as she picked up the phone. "Yeah, I'm making the tea, later."

Satisfied, Naru turned and ambled back to his cave.

John was usually the only person Naru would call for assistance and Mai worked with him much more often than Ayako and Takigawa, much to her disappointment. John wasn't bad; he was a great person to be with, better than the four white walls that she had to face everyday. It was just that she was really looking forward in seeing the quarrelling duo again and knowing what kind of cases they would be involved in and how they would handle their work.

After she happily called for John, Mai headed to the kitchen and began her usual brewing of tea. Sometimes she wondered if she was even here to be his assistant or his tea-maker. He called her to make his tea more often than doing legit investigating stuff that Mai was expecting. Still nonetheless, as long the money was still rolling into her bank, it didn't matter.

Finally finishing his tea, she carefully walked to his office. Knocking once, she went in after hearing a muffled grunt.

"Is John coming?"

"On his way." She placed the cup onto his desk and stood by it far longer than she should.

He looked up at her. "What?"

Mai would have grumbled about not thanking her for her tea, but this time the reason she stood there wasn't because of that; she was already starting to get used to it.

"What do you think about Nohara Kasumi's case? Where do you think her husband go? Is he dead? Is he alive? How are you going to find him?"

Naru picked up his tea and took a long sip. After he set it down on his table, Mai was already on her toes.

"Did I hire you to ask me questions or to file the remaining papers, which you have yet to do so?"

"Will it kill you to let me know what you're thinking?"

"Yes. Now get out. Tell John to come into my office once he's here."

She could feel her finger twitched and wanting to wrap it around his neck. Quickly swallowing her anger down, she brushed her short hair and walked herself out and shut the door behind her.

There was no way she was going to explode at him because that was definitely what he was aiming for. That smirk, that snort, that soft and cold chuckle that sent shivers down her spine everytime... She had no plans in mind to handle them today.

.o.

The bar Naru brought her to was much, much better than the one she went with Takigawa before.

The music was soothing, the air was fresher and the conversations that were held between the customers seemed more business and friendly-like, rather than ones that sounded like a fight would start anytime. Mai closely glued herself to Naru, a little afraid to lose him in the crowd. With his black jackets and attire, he blended in better than her bright pink shirt and white skirt.

After settling down by the counter, Mai wanted to ask Naru what happened to him to make him bring her here. Did he took the wrong medicine? Did he hit his head too hard? Did a meteorite crashed and some alien invaded his brain? Why the hell were they here at a bar? It was nearly impossible that he came here with her to relax, but still...

Before she could express her curiosity, a glass of drink was being pushed towards her direction.

"Something non-alcoholic prepared just for you."

Mai glanced up and blinked dramatically. "A-Ayako?!" She blabbered and quickly picked up her drink and pretended to take a sip while trying to regain her composure. Her reaction was something rather... attracting for attention.

Naru sighed. "You need to learn how to not overreact."

She wiped her mouth with the back of her hands. "I can't control it." She spat. "But, Ayako, what are you doing here?"

"What do you think?"

Mai pursed her lips and managed to piece the meaning together in an instant. She glanced around, wondering what kind of mission Ayako was tasked to. A bartender definitely, but why was she here? Suddenly, it clicked in Mai's mind. This was the bar Arima Toshi worked in.

Ayako brought a glass towards Naru and poured him the drink she made before leaving to clean up her materials for the creation. Mai gawked at the final product, which was the result of another talent she never know Ayako had and sighed inwardly. What was she even capable of? Making tea? Yeah, that was about it.

Her eyes were focused on the beautiful mixture of colors and bubble gas, even when Naru was holding onto the glass and taking a sip from it.

"Are you done staring? We're here to work."

Mai gaped. "Now that I realized it, this is the first time I've seen you drinking something that is not tea."

He sighed again before he pointed at another bartender who was standing at a corner and finishing a drink for a customer.

"See that woman? Her name is Tomeo Asami."

Mai followed his finger and raised an eyebrow. "What about her?"

"I want you to get as much information from her as possible. Anything is fine."

"W-What?" Mai blinked. "How am I supposed to do that?"

"That's for you to figure out."

"I thought we're working on Nohara Kasumi's case?"

"It's related."

"How is it related?"

"Just do it, Mai."

"But you can't just ask me to do it when I don't know what's going on. What if I ruin your operations? I'm not going to bear responsibility or-"

"Mai."

"What?"

"Do it."

She gritted her teeth. "Whatever you say then."

This wasn't the first time Naru told her to talk to random people in the middle of the job and get information about the person for him. It was nerve-wrecking at first, but Mai was slightly used to it by now,

So when he ordered her to do it this time, she was a little more willing to give in without a long fight. Mai was stubborn, and she knew it well herself, but Naru was even better at it. It would be a wasted effort in trying to defy him since she often lose. Often, but not always. She won in certain arguments before, which was pretty amazing. (That was what John said when she boasted it to him.)

Jumping off her chair, Mai slowly loitered around and until when she found the perfect time then she leaned forward onto the counter where Tomeo Asami was.

"Would you like to order a drink?" Tomeo Asami asked.

"No, its fine." Mai raised her own glass with a smile. "Just had a fight, I want some space."

Asami cocked her head over to Naru and showed a knowing smile. "If it's over a small thing, don't let it drag far too long."

"I won't, because this wouldn't be the last time anyway so I have to learn to get used to it." Mai sighed as her eyes wandered over Asami, trying not to seem like she was judging or observing, just her gaze lingering. Appearance is key. She needed to see what she could see in order to decipher something. That was something Naru taught her before.

Tomeo Asami was just a plain ordinary bartender. Long black hair, nice eyes, thin lips, good smile. Everyone's clothing was the same too, so Mai couldn't infer much. But once her eyes reached Asami's hands as the latter was wiping a glass, Mai blinked.

"That's a nice ring you have."

"Thank you."

"I wonder when I can ever wear such a nice ring." Mai stared her own ring finger. It was one of those conversations she and her friends stayed up all night talking about it so those words just came out naturally.

Asami gave a light chuckle. "You can ask your boyfriend over there."

Mai gasped. "He's not my boyfriend! Just a... friend." She quickly cleared her throat. "Anyway, that's something expensive. You picked it together?"

"Nope, it was custom-made. A gift to celebrate our fourth anniversary a few days back."

Mai smiled. "He must have loved you a lot. So you're married for four years?"

"Oh," Asami's face fell. "I'm not married yet."

"So it's a package?" Mai joked. "An anniversary gift and a proposal sort-of ring?"

"...Kind of."

"I think I've asked too much, sorry." Mai gave a sheepish smile. Asami's tone and sudden stiff posture, told Mai she had done something wrong to start letting her to build the defensive barrier around her. Was it because their conversation was nothing but her ring? Mai wanted to explain she wasn't going to rob her or anything, but before she could, Asami's attention was already somewhere else.

"The peak period is coming, I have to tend to the rest. Please enjoy your drink." She gave a polite nod and headed to the new customers who just sat on their seats.

Defeated, Mai trudged back to where Naru was and slumped onto her chair.

"So what's the verdict?" Naru started.

"I think you'll call me stupid like always for telling you this."

"I've never call you stupid before, Mai."

"Oh really." Her tone dripped with sarcasm.

"Every observations count. Even if it's the same answer, our point of views are different. Tell me, when have I called you stupid when you told me about the information you got?"

Mai's mouth hung open, ready to say something but was loss for words. She couldn't remember. Or more like it didn't happen at all. But why did she feel like he always undermined her in every way? His narcissistic aura must be rubbing her ego even when he didn't say anything.

"She was proposed." Mai began, pushing that conversation behind. "Yet at the same time, it's like she wasn't. Just a feeling."

"Explain."

"Explain what."

"What your feeling is telling you."

"It's a gut feeling. How do you explain that?"

Naru paused. "Anymore?"

"Well, it's a nice ring."

"And?"

"Now that I think of it, it's weird." Mai straightened her posture. "Since it's a new ring, and something so important, why is she wearing it to work?"

His silence encouraged her to continue.

"I mean, if I'm her, I wouldn't bring wear it to work. She's working as a bartender, where her hands does most of the job. I wouldn't want my ring to be scratched." Mai quickly turned towards Naru and waved her arms, a little flustered. "I'm assuming in my point of view. Maybe she's a careful person so she's sure there wouldn't be any scratch."

"It's a fine assumption."

"R-really?" Mai felt a trickle of hope seeping through her crack of embarrassment. She wasn't confident in her abilities of observing and analysing things after interacting with John and the rest. Furthermore, Ayako worked here, that means Naru must have heard almost everything from the redhead and hers would be redundant. So when he claimed her assumption were fine, it was rather uplifting.

"Anyway, we should go." Naru began plucking out bills from his wallets and placed it beside his half empty drink.

Mai quirked an eyebrow. "That's fast. What about Ayako?"

"She's fine alone."

"But why are we leaving so fast? Is it because you hate this romantic song they are playing now?"

"Another fine assumption, but no, it's not the main reason we're leaving." Naru already left his seat and Mai quickly followed. "We're being watched."

Mai quickened her steps, her eyes widened. "A-Are you serious?"

He didn't answer and Mai didn't dare to defy him either.

When they exited the bar, it was already dark outside and Mai could barely recognize the difference in the environment when the streets were dimly lit as well. As the continued walking, Mai miraculously managed to sync her steps with him, their shoulders side by side. When she thought of the rare proximity between Naru and her, she made sure that her chuckles wouldn't be heard out loud. But his close presence beside her wasn't enough to distract her from what he said previously.

Who could be watching them? Why didn't she felt anything? Would the person follow them out of the bar too? Mai was tempted to turn around to check, but she was afraid if she turned around, there would be a gun or knife pointing at her. She wasn't ready to see that.

"Are you looking for Arima Toshi?"

The street was empty, so although the shout was faint, it was clear. Mai blinked and turned towards the voice, completely forgetting about the guns and knifes she imagined a while ago. She couldn't help it, her curiosity level had peaked to the point of no return and the fact that the person sounded normal, unlike some gangster's voice, Mai doubted there was any threat.

"Continue walking." Naru gritted through clenched teeth, but his warning came too late.

The person managed to catch up with Mai, blocking her from walking any further. Mai bit her lips, noticing the annoyed look as Naru backtracked to her side. It was comforting that he came back for her, but that frown of his face sort of washed away the gratitude Mai wanted to feel for him.

It, or rather, the person was a petite and pretty looking lady. Everything seemed normal, just that she was wearing a white floral kimono, which was weird to see on the street where clubs and bars were at. Her eyes were clam and gentle, saved for a hint of mischief that glinted in her eyes and it wasn't the first time Mai seen it; that pervert look every girl gave when they saw Naru.

"Do you know who Arima Toshi is?" The lady glanced over at Naru, rephrasing her question from before.

Mai almost wanted to blurt out how she knew him, but she held back her tongue just in time. It was close, too close. She could already imagine Naru glaring her to death if she say her curiosity out loud.

"No." Naru simply said and scrutinized the lady briefly before turning to Mai. "Let's go."

The woman didn't give up. She stood in front of Naru and Mai, blocking their way at the same time. But Mai could tell her only interest was solely on Naru, she didn't even bother to look at Mai after Naru appeared by her side.

"Have we met before?"

Mai sweat dropped. She wasn't surprised that people on the streets were giving her boss those seducing gaze every time they were outside, but this was a first for someone to say something this bold. Was this some kind of pick-up line?

"No." He repeated his reply, his tone tainted with confidence. Typical Naru.

She narrowed her eyes and brought a hand to her lips. "Is that so? Anyway, I'm Hara Masako." She pulled out a name-card from her purse and handed it to Naru. It took quite some time before he decided to accept it.

Mai tiptoed and peeked at the card in Naru's hand. There were a couple of big companies' names and addresses all over the card, but she only focused on what was important.

Hara Masako
Journalist

Mai wasn't sure if he had some sort of hatred towards name-cards or something but he looked completely unhappy with his pursed lips and slanted eyes. She quickly glanced away, wondering if she should get involved with his possibly upcoming rude remarks. She often chide him for being so straightforward towards their client, but this time, the girl might even be more straightforward than him and Mai want to see the outcome of this conversation.

Masako quirked an eyebrow. "Aren't you supposed to give me your name-card?"

"To be honest, I'm not keen in wanting to know you." Naru showed her name-card back at her face. "And I'm not interested to be in contact with you, so there isn't a reason for me to give you mine."

Mai's breathe hitched. Mindlessly, she felt her purse in her pocket, where she kept Naru's name-card safe in it. Shaking her head inwardly, she cast a pity look over at the utterly shocked Masako.

Masako's eyes twitched and she snatched the name-card from his fingers, but almost immediately, a smile fell back on her face.

"You'll regret it, but it's fine. This wouldn't be the last time we're meeting anyway."

"It's alright to dream, I suppose." Naru turned over to Mai. "We've wasted enough time. Let's go."

"Wait-"

Mai waited, but Naru didn't. He continued his way down the street and Mai hesitated if she should follow or not. But her conscious won and she stood still her position, acknowledging Masako's poor attempt in getting Naru's attention.

"Erm... Do uou want me to give him your last message or something?" Mai tilted her head.

"It's fine." Masako said sourly and spun around in her short heels. She only gave a disdainful glance back before walking away.

Mai rolled her eyes. 'What the hell is her problem?'

"Are you going to stand there forever or what?" Naru spat from a distance.

She whirled around and rushed forward towards Naru, leaving the existence of Hara Masako behind her.

They weren't going to meet again anyway.