How's the story so far?

I hope you like it, and if you do, I'm glad! haha

This is just a bit more sibling action before we plunge into the main storyline, when Aoi joins 3D! I bet everyone's excited about that! it should be about one or two chapters away, if not the next chapter, so look forward to it!

Please enjoy this chapter.

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Tell me what you think! :]

Chapter 4: Cold

Aoi rubbed her hands together to keep them warm, stuffing them in the pockets of her jacket right after. It was so cold she could see her breath come out in little puffs.

She was standing outside the lobby of her step father's hotel, looking around every moment or so in hopes of catching sight of her brother. Everyone that one supposed to be there was there – her father, her mother, her stepfather and even her stepbrother. Only Ryu was missing, and she'd volunteered to wait for him at the lobby.

Of course, what she was doing now was far from it. She was more than a few feet away from the warmth of the hotel lobby, and was shivering on the street in her cocktail dress and a thin jacket that she'd happened to bring along.

Finally spotting the familiar shoulder-length brown hair that belonged to her brother, she waved at his silhouette so that he'd see her. Ryu did, and quickened his steps to the hotel. It was already late out, and the sun had set long ago. The sky was pitch black, only lighted up by the bright tourist-attracting street right in front of the hotel. As he approached, Aoi could make out that he was still wearing the uniform of Kurogin Academy.

One of his eye brows rose at the sight of Aoi, and he quickly took off his blazer and draped it over her shoulders. She breathed a sigh of relief and pulled the warm blazer close over her chest. "Yo." Ryu greeted.

Aoi giggled, shivering uncontrollably for a second before maintaining her normal, straight posture. "Yo." She shot back with a smile.

The two siblings started walking back to the hotel. Ryu glanced at the shivering hand holding the coat closed. "Take care of your hands. Just because you aren't in that stupid band of yours anymore, doesn't mean your career as a drummer is over."

In her old school, Aoi had picked up drumming after joining a band, even though she'd had no idea how to play any instrument before that. She'd turned out to be quite a prodigy, actually, and her mother had used that as a selling point, even though she'd been disgusted and disappointed at first. She'd wanted Aoi to become a dancer, and join the dance troupe in her school, which was quite famous. Nonetheless, in a few weeks, Aoi had become quite famous in the world of the rich and musical, as a drummer.

Ryu proceeded to herd her into the warmth of the lobby, ignoring the sharp looks cast at him by the hotel employees, wondering why their boss's daughter was hanging out with such a Yankee. It was a five star hotel, after all, and delinquents like him didn't fit in there.

It was eloquently decorated, with the floor made of marble. The floor in the lift lobby was covered by a plush red carpet, and the lifts were tinged gold. A few Caucasians walked out of one of the lifts, laughing merrily at something one of them said in English.

The twins left the elevator on the topmost floor, where the upper class restaurant they were supposed to meet at was. It was popular with either very famous or very rich people, because of the large, floor to ceiling windows in every private room.

When they got out of the elevator, Ryu understood why. On the immediate right left, there was one of those famed windows, along with an expensive looking flower vase in the corner. The scenery was amazing, and he really had to commend Aoi's stepfather on the great positioning of the hotel, not that he'd say it out loud.

"Takahashi sama," The manager bowed low. He was wearing an expensive looking suit, and scrutinized Ryu with a disgusted look in his eyes, as well as the jacket, that obviously belonged to him, that Aoi was still wearing. "Your parents, the chief of police and your brother have been waiting for you."

That's right. Ryu had forgotten that Aoi had been forced to change her last name to suit her step father's. Aoi visibly flinched at the name he'd called her, and resisted correcting him. "Oh, thanks, Manager-san." Turning to Ryu, she smiled. "Let's go!"

Before they could take another step in, the manager held out his hand so as to not let them pass. He glared at Ryu again, and the eldest Odagiri child glared back easily. "Takahashi sama, who's this? He's not dressed suitably and I don't think it's polite to bring your… friends… in to there."

"Oh, no, he's an invited guest!" Aoi chuckled, waving it off. She grabbed Ryu's hand and attempted to drag him in.

"Takahashi sama." The manager said firmly. "This… delinquent isn't allowed in. Please understand the rules."

Aoi's eyes hardened and Ryu sighed. He suspected as much that he wouldn't be let in. "Manager-san, please move out of our way before you cause more trouble."

The manager still didn't budge. "But-"

"He is Odagiri Ryu, my twin brother and the son of the chief of police." With every tittle, the manager seemed to shrink back. "I was sent down by my father to wait for Ryu, and then bring him into our private room. Please move aside, if not, I'm sure there's a lovely little café hiring waiters down the street."

"O-oh," he stuttered, bowing low again before stepping aside to let them in. "Gomenasai, Takahashi sama." Hesitantly, he also greeted Ryu. "Odagiri-san."

Aoi nodded, smiling slightly, before leading them in. They received a few more stares, but the manager didn't dare to follow them. Suddenly, Ryu became really conscious of what he was wearing. Every guest there seemed to either have something with diamonds or pearls strapped to a body part.

They entered a dimly lit hallway, lighted with a few low lying golden chandeliers, with light reflecting off the diamonds decorating them. Along the hallway, there were numerous oaken doors with brass knobs and frosted glass in its middle. All were closed.

They finally got to the end of the hallway, where Aoi turned and led them down another one. It seemed to be never ending, until they reached the dead end of that one. There were double doors on each side, but the set right in front of them was the biggest, and by far the most magnificent.

There was no frosted glass this time, just a pair of huge oak doors. An attendant stood outside the pair of doors, and he bowed low to Aoi and Ryu, though he didn't question.

The attendant opened the door to reveal a large room. The room was like viewing area, with clear glass windows from the floor to the ceiling on three sides, facing the city lights. The room, like the whole restaurant, was carpeted. In the middle of the room, was a big table. His mother, father, step mother, Aoi's step father and step brother were all seated, steaming crystal bowls of sharks fin on each plate of the table before them.

Although the room was well-lit from the warm glow of the specialized chandelier, it still seemed chilly inside, like there was an unfriendly updraft. At once, Ryu could sense that he wasn't welcomed one bit.

Standing up, the chief of police gestured to the two seats left on the table. "You're late." He started disapprovingly. "Take a seat, and then we can begin."

So that's it for today. I'm gonna start working on the next chapter! And it might be on when Aoi joins 3D! ;]

So please REVIEW! So that I'll update faster!

Tell me what you think!