High & Low | Crystal Rain

Ep. 24 | Closer to the Truth

Crystal let out a sigh, she was laying on her bed in her small apartment staring at the ceiling fan as it slowly turned in a hypnotic fashion. She'd just returned from her conversation with Rocky in the club and was now reliving the moment over and over in her head.

He was certainly no where near short of words to scold her with. The first being for her actions of sneaking away to joi the fight at the containers, her punishment wasn't as bad as she thought it could have been.

She was no longer permitted to arrive and leave the club freely, if she was to go some place other than back to her apartment she was closely watched either from a far or directly accompanied by a White Rascal and sometimes by Rocky himself.

Rocky kept saying it was for her safety after Doubt clearly had seen who she was after taking part in freeing the majority of the girls they had kidnapped in one of their biggest hauls to date.

Her responsibilities at the club were also lessened to more secretarial works. For example, ordering and restocking the bar before opening and after closing and other financial paperwork.

Her managerial like role on the floor of the club when it was opened was also taken away. Rocky didn't want her accidentally socializing with unsavory characters. This was instead taken over by Kizzy who had no trouble making costumers feel welcomed, male or female.

The second thing they argued about was their confrontation with the Rude Boys. It was less of a scolding and more of a warning. "Do not trust those boys, who only look after themselves. If I find you any where you shouldn't be, especially outside our territory, anyone involved including yourself will be severely punished," "And what if they are telling the truth? You know it yourself that my past is a mystery. No one knows where my real home is...right?"

She had wanted to stop, but the words just kept pouring out spurred on by her emotions, "I mean in all these years, have you ever tried to look for my family or where I came from?" Her voice getting more irritated.

She turned away so she wouldn't have to look at the face the man that was getting on her nerves. "We did," Rocky had shot back "and no one claimed you. Without us you would have no where to go, you would be dead."

She spun back around "But is it so hard to believe? It's not impossible that I could be from the Nameless Street." " I will only say this one more time," he leaned in closer to her face peering down the bridge of his red glasses, "You are not to do anything else idiotic like this again. If you consider me as your brother at all you will do this for me and the rest of your family here at Club Heaven." He re-affixed his glasses, straightened himself back to full height and pushed past her back down the stairs.

It was like they were having two separate conversations. Crystal demanding Rocky acknowledge her uncertain past, Rocky only asking for her loyalty and gratitude for all that he'd done for her and some how Rocky, like always, won their arguments.

Crystal's mind snapped back to the present, faint light was just entering the window from the morning sunrise. She rolled over to face it, daydreaming of what could be and what actually might be.

Of course she treated the members of the White Rascals and the girls at the club like family. She promised that would never change despite any new self discovery she would make in the future.

However, if there was even a small chance that the truth about her real origins and family rested in the Nameless Street. After being in the dark for so long, she owed it to herself to investigate further.

She held her hand in front of her face, focusing again on the scar on her left index finger. She reached up with her other hand, her thumb slowing tracing over the small X shaped mark.

This was the only proof that she had that the Rude Boy, P, was telling the truth. There were also the familiar feelings she got when she saw Lala's photo, heard Smoky's name and seeing the boys of the Nameless Street the previous night.

Crystal spent the next couple of days following Rocky's strict schedule, all the while thinking of a opportune moment to try and sneak off to the Nameless Street. She eventually convinced Rocky to let her visit with some of the girls and check up on them because she hadn't seen them since they'd been kidnapped.

The next morning she had gone to see Sakura, the poor girl was still trying to gather the courage to come back to the club. The brown roots of her natural hair was starting to grow back and was a stark comparison to her normal vibrant bubble gum pink color that now looked dry and faded. Her new outward appearance was very reflective of her change in mood.

Within the following days Crystal made it part of her regular routine to stop by a few of the girls places to see how they were recovering. Some needed more of a mental recovery and others more physical. But all were still shaken by the ordeal and not yet ready to be among the hustle and bustle of strangers at the club.

Rocky allowed these visits but set a time she had to be back at the club and would make sure to check in on her if she didn't arrive at the club on time.

By manipulating her time table she was able to trick the Rascals and began using these visiting opportunities to travel closer and closer to the Nameless Street.

The first time she snuck off she only made it to the outskirts of the Street. Peering through the fencing she just watched the daily lives of those on the Street but nothing rang any bells.

That was until she saw a shadow fly across the ground and looked up just in time to see two figures jump the gap between the street, eight stories up. An immediate blissful feeling washed over, she didn't have an exact memory but could see herself being happy running along the tops of these buildings.

She didn't have time to dwell on it as she had to get back to the club before Rocky or anyone else noticed her absence. The next day she again watched from the borders and quickly hid behind a dumpster when she thought she had caught the eye of one of the Rude Boys. She wan't sure but the name Haruto came to mind when she had seen his face.

It was relatively quiet night at the club, Crystal was stuck in the back office crunching numbers as her mind wondered to what she had witnessed at the Nameless Street. She could feel herself getting closer to the truth and knew the next time she went she was going to have to venture inside their territory, even if the thought actually scared her a little.

She was snapped out of her thoughts when Koo walked into the room, "How is the report coming?" "Done." She straightened the papers and handed them to Koo, who took a quick glance over them. "You're getting better. I see only one minor calculation mistake," he gave her an ever so slightly impressed look which she returned with a small head nod in stead of saying thank you.

Before he disappeared out the door, Koo gave her some news she'd been waiting to hear, "As you know Rocky and I will be out of town scouting a possible new location." "Does this mean I'm back managing the floor," She interrupted him before he could finish. "No," he was blunt, but continued in a calmer tone, "Rocky has asked you remain home for the two days will be gone," "You're putting me on house arrest? Why?" "Rocky believes it is in your best interest and safety while he is away from the club and unable to protect you if the need should arise."

Crystal folded her arms ready to retort but an idea came to her and she remained silent. Koo continued, "That is all for tonight I'll have Kizzy and Kaito escort you home as they are just about to leave as well," He gave a small bow of his head and left the office.

Yes it sucked she was still on probation, being confined to her home and pretty much a one block radius of her building but this was the perfect chance she needed to explore the Nameless Street. As long as she was back for when a White Rascal was scheduled to stop by or when she had promised to visit Sakura, Asami and the other girls.

Now almost two weeks after the fight on the container street, Crystal found herself standing directly in the entrance of the Nameless Street. She closed eyes for a moment centering herself, took an audible deep breath and sigh before opening them and stepping through the makeshift archway.