Case 29 - Frenzied Drama Part 3


    Ã¢â‚¬Å“So what attracts you to Karen so much anyway?”  Keiko asked during dinner.

    Sean froze, piece of bread in hand, unsure if the question was some kind of test.  It sure sounded like one.

    On the table between them was a dinner of Italian food, including an appetizer of some sort of cheese dip and little pieces of toasted bread, and both cheese ravioli and some sort of small noodles in tomato sauce.

    She sipped some of her iced tea.  “It’s not a question to be afraid of,”  she reassured him as she offered him more cheese dip.  “I’m genuinely curious.  Why would you seek her out even after you had a...rather good night...with me?”

    He thought for a moment about how to explain it to her, or whether any kind of explanation might upset her.  But he had to trust her, too, as he always had.  “Sometimes there’s a girl that gets, you know, a guy’s...full attention...every time.”

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“Oh.”  Keiko replied plainly.  She looked down at the table and admitted, “Sometimes I wish I could do that to a guy.”

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“You really should talk to my partner then,”  Sean joked.  His smile disappeared then as he noticed Keiko’s lack of reaction to it, and he quickly added, “I see lots of guys watching you, Keiko.  Especially at the police station.  They just don’t talk to you because they think you’re out of their league.”

    She didn’t reply, instead she took another sip of iced tea.

    Sean looked down at the table slightly.  “I still feel so awkward, Keiko.  Like there’s a fog between us--”  He stopped mid-sentence when Keiko stood while he was talking and walked around to the other side of the table.

    She sat next to him and reached over to hug him with both arms.  “We’re both equally to blame for what happened,”  Keiko whispered close to him.  “There’s no need for me to make you suffer for it.  You have nothing to be afraid of.  Or feel foggy because of.”  She looked up and smiled at him.

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“Even so, Keiko--”  Sean took a deep breath, carefully considering what he was about to say.  “I’ve been thinking about what you said, about me and Karen.  I don’t...really want to marry her.”  He seemed nervous as he spoke, fidgeting and looking down.  “I’d like to live with her though.  I can just imagine--”  He looked at Keiko’s unamused expression and quickly added, “--uh...never mind.”

    Keiko nodded quietly.  “Let me know if you want my help,”  she said plainly, ignoring his stray thought.  To Sean, that sounded almost ominous.

    He swallowed and said, “I hope it’s doesn’t come to that...killing Matt, I mean.  But I do need your help with something else--”

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“You want to be secure at your own place so you can have some privacy without being murdered in your sleep,”  Keiko guessed.

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“Yeah,”  Sean replied.  He chuckled and added, “It’s like you know everything I’m going to say lately.”

    She looked upward for a moment and thought out loud, also ignoring the last part of what he said.  “Perhaps a decent security system would work.  I could have it page me if it’s triggered.”

    Sean smiled at that.  “You’re too good to me,”  he said.

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“Yes, I am.”  Keiko responded as if it was obvious.  “However I would also like to try my skills at designing something like that.  Might be some extra work for the detective business if I can do it well.”

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“I really hope it works for you, Keiko.”  Sean looked down slightly as he added, “You should get something out of this, at least.”

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“Sean, don’t feel down again,”  she reassured him as she began cleaning up after dinner.  “If you feel down then so do I.  If I can make you happy, I’ll be happy too.”

    Sean quickly stood, feeling obligated to help Keiko clean up, especially after she offered so much help when he didn’t really deserve it.  He was surprised when Keiko smiled at him when she noticed what he was doing.  She even nodded at him in thanks.

    Finally, after the cleanup was done, Keiko leaned against the counter in the kitchen and faced Sean, arms folded, but seeming content enough.  “Hanging around here this evening or going out?”  she asked.

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“I think I’ll hang around here,”  he replied.  “I have a lot to think about.”

    Keiko nodded.  “Okay.  I’m going to change.  Boots are nice but they don’t seem to be designed to be worn all the time.”  She looked down at her own feet.

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“I don’t know,”  Sean said with a sly smile as he picked up one of Keiko’s boot covered feet gently, holding the underside of her leg, her knee bent slightly.  “I think the boots are kind of sexy.”

    She laughed and smiled as he released her foot again.  She uncrossed her arms and affectionately brushed his cheek with her fingers before leaving the kitchen, quickly headed upstairs.  Keiko felt happy that Sean wasn’t so withdrawn anymore.

    Sean watched her leave, his mind still holding on to the question of whether he made the right choice going for Karen again.  Karen may be a better lover, but Keiko was by far more attentive and caring.  Still, maybe Keiko was right, and it was better this way.  At the very least, he wouldn’t be hurting his best friend any longer.


---


    Keiko had already changed to a comfy pair of slippers, and put on a light sweatshirt.  Rather than go directly downstairs again, she was caught up with looking out an upstairs hallway window, because it was raining.  It was a cold rain, she could feel the cool air oozing from the glass pane.  She put her hands in her pockets and looked out.

    Yes, she was a little heartbroken over what Sean had done.  But she had no right to take it out on him.  It was something she expected to happen, deserved, after being so careless.  At the very least, he was being so sweet about it, willing to care for her emotional needs as a good friend should.  He deserved the same in return.

    She rolled her eyes at her own thoughts, cursing her jealous tendencies as she had done so many times before.  Jealousy at something  she had no right to be jealous about.  She took a deep breath, and gave thanks that she developed a thick enough skin not to let what happened destroy her closest friendship.

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“You know what sucks?”  Sean asked as he snuck up behind Keiko, though he suspected she knew he was there.  “After all those high emotions we went through...uh...well--”

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“I know what you’re going to say, so you don’t have to feel embarrassed and go through a whole introduction.”  Keiko interrupted him softly.  She turned around and smirked at him.  “I knew before you even said it.  You’re so transparent sometimes.”

    Sean shrugged and smiled.  Then he nodded.  “Yeah, that’s what I was thinking.  It’s a shame my screwup was the topic of all of it, because you know...sleeping together to make up--”

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“Sorry.”  Keiko said plainly, turning his suggestion down with a shrug.  She turned her attention to the rain outside again.  Then she changed the topic.  “I’ll install your security system tomorrow after I visit a couple of people for Lisa’s case.”

    She expected him to sulk.  Instead, she was pleasantly surprised when he gently hugged her and said, “I love you anyway.”  He headed back to the stairway smiling at her.

    Keiko laughed to herself.  She couldn’t help it, Sean’s behavior was so strange sometimes, it was amusing.

    Normally, she would go back downstairs and watch television with Sean and talk to him.  But she felt unusually wound up that evening, and knew she wouldn’t be able to focus on mindless entertainment.  So she arrived downstairs holding a pad of paper, a pencil, and an eraser.

    It was easier to design a security system on paper while alone, but in her heart she knew both she and Sean needed the company.  He seemed understanding enough when she sat on the couch, her legs folded beneath her, and began drawing a layout of Sean’s house.

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“You’re really serious about this.”  Sean said, looking over at the paper.

    Keiko looked up, but didn’t smile till a moment later.  “Of course,”  she replied honestly.  “I’m staking your life on it...and that means more to me than my reputation.”

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“I hope you’re not insulted if I say it means more to me too,”  Sean joked.

    She giggled as she went back to her work.  The security system she was designing had double coverage, the best she could think up.  Window and door sensors to guard the perimeter, and motion detection in case the perimeter sensors failed to notice an intruder.

    Sean interrupted her by hugging her suddenly.  “Because you do so much for me, and I wish I could do more for you.”

    Keiko smiled.  “You’re so wonderfully sentimental for someone who can’t stay with just one girl,” she joked.

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“Yeah,”  Sean laughed.  “At least I can laugh at myself though.  That counts for something doesn’t it?”

    She replied by nodding, but resumed drawing on her pad of paper.  “I’ll work in your house tomorrow,”  she said.  “I’ll be using wireless equipment, which should be faster, though it might still take a day or two to get this all set up.”

    Ã¢â‚¬Å“I think it’ll take longer than that to convince Karen to leave Matt and live with me,”  Sean admitted.  “So you have plenty of time.”

    Keiko smiled, seeming amused by that assessment.  “Sometimes things fall into place quickly with just the right catalyst.  It’s possible I have barely any time at all.  Besides--”  She shuffled a little closer to him.  “As much as I love having you as a house mate, you deserve some privacy too.  Especially if you wish to bring...friends home.”

    She looked at Sean after she stopped talking.  She didn’t notice that he had dozed off while warm and toasty, leaning against her while she drew her diagram and talked.  She pulled a blanket over him and smiled...and then she headed off to bed.


TO BE CONTINUED
    


-- Story written and copyrighted (C) 2008 by Jason Froikin, and may not be 
--    reprinted without permission.  
-- World Class and all characters therein are property of 
--    Strike Two and Jason Froikin.