26 A challenge?

"you are kidding me, right?" i stare hard at the helicopter.

"do i look like i am kidding?" kamiyama looks at me with a placid expression.

"if we go in this, we can reach there faster." haru dances with excitement. "if we go by train tonight, we will reach tomorrow morning."

"it will take only two hours." takeshi nods in agreement. "hack world series has already started two days ago. if we reach today, we can stay there for three more days until it ends."

"it's better something good," iori grumbles.

i take a deep breath. we left the hospital in a hurry. i thought that we would head back home to change, but he drove straight here. this kamiyama bastard always find something to test my limits. where does he get this kind of ideas? this guy is clearly showing off his money. i quietly get inside the helicopter with takeshi and his friends.

i look around. "where is the freaking pilot?"

kamiyama raises his brow. "that's me."

"fuck." i widen my eyes. "i want to get off now."

"you aren't allowed to." he pulls me by my arm. "you are taking the co-pilot seat."

"wait, brother!" takeshi comes forward. "i can -"

he cuts him off. "help your friends and watch over them. i don't want to waste more time. if we go now, we can return sooner."

"i don't want to go." i slap his hand to free myself. should i bite? "i don't want to ride this thing if you are flying without any professional."

he glares at me. "woman, i have a license. i can fly this better than riding a bicycle."

he quietly pushes me on the co-pilot seat and buckles the belt. my heart starts palpitating abnormally. flying this thing better than riding a bicycle? how can he compare bicycle with a helicopter? if i fall off a bicycle, i will get minor injuries. if i fall off the helicopter when it's in the sky, i will die.

"kamiyama, i don't want to die like this. can't we go next time?"

"why? i want to see how you earn by playing games." his tone is light and amused. his actions are smooth and fast while he checks the equipment and instruments. this guy is revelling over my fear.

"kamiyama, i know that we have problems." i press my palm against my chest. "but, mass suicide is not an answer."

he turns his head and looks at me intently. "you don't trust me?"

"trust you?" strange question. i frown at him. i don't like the way he is looking at me. "i don't even trust my blood relatives. who are you to me? you are that homewrecker kamiyama's bastard son who is the ceo of the kamiyama groups. i am the cheater's prostitute daughter. you heard that woman earlier. i offered prostitution services during high and middle school. i was also involved in drugs. i have a violence record too. you will know if you dig into my past."

he sighs and focuses on taking off the helicopter. i look away from him. he is annoying. why is he using words like trust? even if he is the last human on this planet, i don't trust him. fine, i am going to die today. i might as well go with style. i close my eyes and decides to sing a tune from an anime that i have seen a long time ago.

he doesn't utter another word the whole way.

***

"takeuchi, we have reached." kiyohira pats her shoulder to wake her up. to his surprise, she opens her eyes instantly. so, she has been pretending to sleep. "where is it being held here?"

rie glowers at him. "you think that you can go there like this? you smell bad."

"this is your vomit." he points at the dried gruesome patches on his clothes. "i smell like this because of you."

"then, you should have taken a bath and changed clothes before you decided to fly this damn thing like a careless rich playboy." her face contorts in anger. "i thought that i was going to die today."

"i told you that i have a license." he unbuckles the belts. "i can fly this better than i can ride a -"

"do you know how to ride a bicycle?" she grabs his black tie. "tell me honestly."

"i don't." he rolls his eyes. "my father taught me how to fly this. he was a trained pilot too."

she lets out a sigh of exasperation. "you can come back in this. but, i will take the train. else, i will run away. this is my limit, kamiyama."

he clicks his tongue. "like you can run away from me."

she looks into his eyes solemnly. "kamiyama, if i decide to disappear, you can't find me even unless i want you to find me."

he leans closer to her. "is that a challenge?"

"it's not a challenge." she chuckles. "your world and my world are different. i will show you a glimpse of my world today. don't be star struck."

kiyohira feels a dull ache in his chest when she smiles like that. she probably means that she will go to her house when it's rebuilt. he watches her with apprehension. she seems like a wind at this moment. there is a strange shine in her eyes. where else can she hide? he can find her anywhere.

it's not like he wants to find her. for the sake of his family's reputation and his empire, he must keep this woman with him until everything is resolved. he takes a deep breath. it won't take long. it's better to send her back to a different place. she is strange and dangerous.

"it didn't even take two hours." he hears iori's voice. "one hour and fifty-six minutes."

"you have been looking at the watch all the way." haru berates her. "what did you expect anyway? it's takeshi's elder brother. he is good at everything."

"except bike riding." rie chimes in. "he can't ride a bike."

tch! kiyohira holds himself back from slapping the back of her head. she is still going on about that. it's not enough for her that he is a licensed pilot. however, she can't trust him because he can't ride a bike. she is an absolute peasant.

haru purses his lips in a straight line. takeshi smiles at her. "i can't ride a bike either. do you know how to ride a bike, sister?"

"seriously!" rie sighs. "i learned it in elementary school. my father -" she stops talking and stares at takeshi. there is a flicker of sadness that passes through her eyes. she smiles brightly. "it's been a long time, but i can teach you when we go back."

kiyohira follows them out of the helicopter. he has been observing her. this woman doesn't show her true feelings. she can lie smoothly, but she hesitates when she speaks the truth. she has only shown fake smiles in front of him. she hates him without a doubt. she has tricked him to get out of the hospital. it doesn't matter if they have left like that. the doctor has already taken the samples for the tests. if she has any physical disease, he will know.

however, he will dig into her past like she has told him to. he needs to know more about her.