He felt uncomfortable already. Everybody was looking at him and he just managed to plaster his usual smile, the one he used to cover the awkwardness. He said hello to everybody and pretended they didn’t look so shocked. He sat down and looked at Akane.

“Hello.” She said and smiled at him. That smile, Yamaa noticed, turned her from somewhat plain to pretty. Yamaa nodded in response.  Then he noticed Kimura. He was looking at him and Yamaa could actually see his brain working. From him he looked surreptitiously at Akane and then back to him. It didn’t matter, whatever he concluded would be wrong. There was nothing between the two of them. For whatever reason, he had never felt more than a little affection for people; he had enough with his collection now. Akane was nice and smart and he felt comfortable with her, which was rare, but she was still “people” and people never understood him. But she had been nice to him without expecting anything and had helped him get Pink, even if she had been unaware of that fact. A couple, not that he thought of them as a couple… but a couple eating lunch together was far less suspicious than a man sitting in the park alone every day, that’s what he’d been thinking about the day she’d bumped into him.

They spent a couple of hours eating and drinking. Akane and Yamaa didn’t have opportunity to talk, which was a pity, they both thought.

They all decided to go to a karaoke and as they were starting to leave Akane realized she had left her wallet and cell phone in the office.

“Don’t worry, you can go back and get it, it’s only a few blocks and then you can meet us at the karaoke place.” said Kimura.

“I’ll go with you. The building’s empty, it’s probably not a good idea for you to go alone.” said Hiroshi.

“Actually,” interrupted Kimura. “Yamaa-kun, are you going to the office on Monday?”

“What? Uhm, no. I was thinking I would work from home next week as well.”

“I see. Well there are some papers on my desk that I really need you to sign. Would you mind going with Kurogawa-san and sign them? It would really help me out.”

“Sure, I can do that.”

“Great, see you at the karaoke place.” Then Kimura got close to Yamaa and whispered: “No need to hurry, though.”

 

Yamaa and Akane were walking down the street. She had felt awkward at the pub and wasn’t sure she wanted to go to the karaoke place and she was pretty sure Yamaa-san felt the same way. But of course they had to come back; it wouldn’t do for the both of them to just disappear together. Probably they wouldn’t think anything of it anyway, though. Nobody seemed to believe Yamaa was interested in her as more than a lunch companion, which was true but bothered her a little. Well, maybe Kimura-san would think something of it. He had seemed to be very interested in them at the pub.

They got to the apartment building and Yamaa opened the doors. It was an old building which they had restored to set up the office, so there were no other businesses there. Akane was glad she wasn’t alone, with only a few lights on and completely empty, the building did look a little creepy.

They called the elevator and got in.

“I’m glad you came. Thank you.” said Akane. “I know you don’t usually come to this sort of things.”

“It’s okay. I was having fun.”

“Liar.” Akane said with a smile.

“Was it that obvious?”

“Only to the keen observer.”

“And…”

At that moment the elevator stopped but they hadn’t arrived at the 3^rd floor. Yamaa pressed some of the buttons but nothing happened.

“Can we call someone from here?” Akane asked.

“No, we don’t have a 24 hour service.” Yamaa said and started patting his pockets. He didn’t have his cell phone. That’s when the lights went out. They were trapped in the elevator; it was Friday so no one would go until Monday. God, his dolls, he couldn’t leave them for a whole weekend. What if something happened? What if one of them got hurt? Or there was a fire? Oh, god. This was his fault, something bad was gonna happen and it was all his fault. Another mistake, why did he always have to make mistakes?

 

Yamaa was starting to hyperventilate. Obviously, he was having a panic attack. Akane got closer slowly and carefully put a hand on his back.

“Yamaa-san,” she said in the most soothing voice she could muster. “It’s okay. We’ll get out” The emergency lights kicked in. It was still dark but at least she could see a little. Yamaa turned around and in the dim light she could see the despair in his eyes.

“It’ll be my fault, my fault, my mistake.” Yep, panic attack, he wasn’t making any sense.

 “What will be your fault?” she asked.

Yamaa closed his eyes and shook his head; then he crouched and started rocking slightly back and forth. She crouched next to him and said.

“None of this is your fault.”

“I know, but if I’m not back…” then, as If catching himself, he stopped talking.

“Okay then, whatever you have to do or wherever you have to be, it won’t be your fault. You couldn’t predict this; it’s not your fault.” She put her hand on his back and started moving it in circles. He started to calm down.

“They’ll come and get us” said Akane when he started breathing a little more easily. “They are expecting us at the karaoke place. When we don’t show up they’ll come looking for us.”

“Right, I’m sorry.”

“It’s okay.” Said Akane and started to get up but Yamaa grabbed her wrist and stopped her.

“Would you mind sitting next to me for a while.” He said looking up at her. With that lost puppy face she would have said no to very little.

“Sure” she said and sat back down next to him. He scooted closer to her and said:

“Tell me something, anything.” When Akane frowned, he added: “It would take my mind off… things. Please?”

Again, that lost puppy face. Akane started talking and told him every funny thing that had happened to her and, being so clumsy and a general mess, there were many.

After who knows how long and after making him laugh, they were silent. Yamaa looked at her, serious again and said:

“Thank you”

“You are welcome.” She answered and looked at him. They stared at each other and something in the atmosphere changed. Yamaa got closer until she could feel his breath on her face. His eyes went to her lips and she had to take a deep breath. He got closer…

“Yamaa-san, Kurogawa-san!”  It was Hiroshi’s voice.

They stayed still, without even breathing.

“Yamaa-kun.” Kimura shouted.

Yamaa closed his eyes and looked down.

“In here.” He said and got up. He extended his hand to her and helped her up.

“We are getting you out in a moment.” Kimura said. A moment later the doors opened. Yamaa helped her out and then got out himself.

“After an hour, Hiroshi-san here insisted we came down to see if you were ok. Oh here, Yamaa-kun, I found your phone on the floor of the pub, you must have dropped it.”

“Thank you, Kimura.” He grabbed the phone and said: “I think I’m going home. I don’t really feel like going to a karaoke place. Kurogawa-san, are you ok?”

Akane was surprised, since they had been rescued from the elevator he hadn’t even looked at her.

“Yes, I’m fine.”

“Ok, then I’ll be going.” He nodded in their general direction and left.

Akane was so confused. Wasn’t he supposed to be gay? But he had been about to kiss her in the elevator and she had had to suppressed a curse when she had herd Hiroshi. It was probably the fact that she had helped him through his attack. That’s why he had been so awkward afterwards. Yeah that was it. She would stop thinking about it… as if she could.