Seven Days for Evil's Sake

Mamouru let out a sigh as Taylor revelled in his lowest moment. "Yes... Please get it out of your system now." He said in a defeated tone as he watched her giggle with delight. He narrowed his eyes when she asked her if it was the first time it happened.

"Of course it's the first time." He growled out. It was fine. All her torture and humiliation that she was heaping on him gave him the opportunity to take the high road and be the betterperson. "I assure you it will be the only time." He added. Before he was pulled to the bed.

"You'd be lying, for one." He said straight away. "And for two, I could. I'm certain it was a one time thing. Finally, even if you were to suddenly decided you wished to make love to me, I would have to decline any and all temptations."

Normally a statement like that would be said to try and goad Taylor to see if she'd actually do it but now he actually meant the words which he was certain Taylor knew which made it that much worse fore Mamouru.

Taylor's eyebrows went up and she held in a laugh. She did her best to play it cool.

"Really?" She asked. "You're not just saying that because your game is to manipulate girls into coming on to you? But..." She bit her bottom lip and looked up at him. "I can't help it... All your skeevy passive aggressive shit is like spanish fly, and..." She swallowed hard, and it took all her self control to say the next part without laughing, but she sold the shit out of it.

"I think I'm falling for you." She stood up and took a step into Mamouru to back him up. "Now that you're so upstanding and respectable and stuff, I just can't stop thinking about you and your sad, broken, flaccid man parts." Her gaze lingered on him for a moment before she walked past him with a laugh.

She got a glass from a cabinet in the kitchen and filled it with water, and then leaned up against the counter while she took a drink and looked Mamouru over. She couldn't help but think that he was being serious. His behavior so closely resembled that of someone who sincerely wanted to fix the problems between them, and who was actually on the straight and narrow, that she was sure he had to be up to something.

"So..." She started over, having put her games behind her. She was done having fun with him. "What exactly are we doing here?"

"I'm not." He said in an even tone. "If I was just trying to see if I still worked, you're the last person I would come see. If I wanted to manipulte you, it wouldn't be worth telling you something like that. I like getting my kicks without humiliating myself." He added dryly. He continued to endure her bratement as stoically as possible until she finally finished.

"I told you already." He said. "I want us to be able to be able to speak to each other without having to grit our teeth and hold back insults. It's not like we have to be friends or anything but I don't see why every meeting has to be you and I fighting. There's got to be something the two of us have in common. If it were just you and I, I wouldn't have bothered but for Cassie-San's sake." He paused. "And to a lesser extent Johnny-Kun's, we can't go on the way we have been. I certainly wouldn't have entrusted you with such a humiliating secret if I wasn't serious." He then looked at her and smiled.

"I'm willing to do what I have to. If you don't then at least I can say I did everything I could to make the situation work. At least if I do that, Cassie-san will understand if things don't work between you and I... Hopefully. She doesn't need any more stress than I've already put her under." He then sighed and ran his fingers through his hair.

Taylor became irritated. She made a face.

"So, what, you want us to be best buds just because you have the hots for a girl who will never ever want you? I don't like you managing her or whatever it is you're doing, but I think I've been pretty cool with letting you guys do your thing without flipping out about it. How much more do you want from me? Do you want to come over and have tea and hold hands and talk about sunsets and shit?"

Taylor didn't like Mamouru for who he was, and who he was to her. If he was actually amending his ways as a direct result of his relationship with Cassie, and Taylor could understand how that could happen, that in itself was at least as troubling to Taylor. Would she have the guts to change her attitude toward him if he actually wasn't a douche?

The idea that this had all suddenly turned around on Taylor made her sick. Mamouru was the horrible person, not her, but suddenly she was starting to feel like a dick. The deeply buried twinge of jealousy she felt for Mamouru's apparent dedication to Cassie hurt her on a level that she would never admit to herself or anyone else.

She sighed, and hopped up to sit on the counter. "I dunno, man... I don't want to make Cassie's life difficult, that'd be a dick move and everything, but... I guess... You just kinda freak me out." She said quietly, the last part especially quietly. She wanted to jump off the counter and rip into him and punch him in the face to make up for what she'd just let slip, but it wouldn't do any good.

She looked down at the floor for a minute, and then back at Mamouru. "I don't know if this is related or anything, but while we're being all... whatever this is... Am I... am I, uh..." Now that she was trying to say it, she didn't have the faintest idea how to find the words. "I think... I want you to think I'm cool, and I'm afraid that you'd figure that out and... you know. Use it. I'm afraid... all the goddamn time, it seems like, but I'm getting better... There, that's as touchy-fucking-feely as I'm getting." She said, putting on anger to mask her girliness. "And don't get used to it."

Mamouru reciprocated Taylor's irritation. "Aside from showing up at my house and threatening to beat me up, you've been a perfect angel." He scoffed. He then sighed. "I told you. I'm not expecting us to hang out or whatever. The less we see each other... I'm fine with that. But when it does happen, and it seems like the chances for it are increasing, I don't want to there to be tension... or as little as possible. I don't think THAT is too much to ask."

He let out a sigh as the mood began to shift. He listened to her quietly. By the time she was finished, he smiled. "It's fine." He said and turned his head. "I'd like you to think I'm not a complete asshole either so I guess we both have somethings to work on."

He turned his head. "Listen... When we first met I did sort of think you were just some chick. I was just interested in getting you and laying you. Obviously when you took to Johnny I thought you were either dumb, felt bad for Johnny or was just trying to get at me because you knew what I was up to. I guess that might have pissed me off a little. Maybe it even intrigued me a little. Honestly, the more difficult a challenge is, the more appealing it is." He paused. "I'm sure you know all this but please allow me to make my point. I'm not just trying to point out how much of a dick I can be." He fidgeted for a second.

"There's that but somehow you seem to actually LIKE Johnny. I don't know how or why but it doesn't matter. Either way, you're the best thing that's ever happened to him and you showed up just in time to probably save him from a life of trying to be like me. So.. what I am getting at is that I guess we both have something on the line in all of this because if you end up hurting him, then I'll kick your ass." He smirked at Taylor. "And I don't care how much more experience or talent you have, there's still a part of me that has a brother's duty." He then laughed a little nervously.

"Taylor-san." He said abruptly. "Honestly, I'm a little scared as well." He paused, almost surprised at his words. "For everything that's coming down lately. There's a lot on the line and... I might be just as skeptical of myself as you are." He lifted up his head and looked at Taylor, running his fingers through his hair.

Taylor smiled quietly and looked down at the floor. She straightened her legs and wiggled her toes and thought about Johnny. She did really like Johnny. If anything, she just wanted more ofhim. She had definitely picked the right twin, but she'd be lying if she said that Mamouru was all bad. Out of all their contrasting traits, Mamouru was confident in himself in a way that Johnny wasn't. Now that confidence seemed to be cracking a little, and Taylor didn't know what to think about it.

"So..." She began, and took a deep breath. "This is incredibly stupid, but I'm gonna ask it anyway. You said 'the more difficult a challenge is'... I'm pretty tough. Do you think I'm... like, do you think I'd be, uh... worth it?" She asked, and looked meekly over at him. She could already feel her cheeks warming over.

God, she was a mess. Why was she so ridiculous? And why of all people would she be opening up to Mamouru?

Mamouru smiled as Taylor clammed up a litle. He let out a soft, breathy chuukle and then closed his eyes and turned his head. "Tere's a part of me that's still interested, if that answers your question." He then opened his eyes and loked at Taylor. "You don't have to worry about that though." Mamouru then stepped forward and lifted up his hand. He placed it ontop of her head and smiled at her. "You're pretty cute sometimes, Taylor-san. Thank you for sharing."

Mamouru brought his hand off her head and then turned his body to face the door. "Everything seems in order now, I suppose. I won't waste anymore of your time." He said and lowered his head politely.

Taylor grumbled and looked down again. She didn't know if she was flattered enraged by Mamouru's pandering, and the confusion was embarrassing.

She looked up, with a look on her face that was surprised, sad, and almost pathetic. Before she could gather her wits enough to put her tough, sarcastic front back up, she realized that she didn't want Mamouru to go. Maybe she was just lonely. She didn't spend a lot of time around people. The daily grind of training got so, so lonely, with the rare exception of the days when she trained with someone else, namely Akashi. That must've been it, it couldn't have been Mamouru himself.

But she knew that that just wasn't true, and it killed her. She didn't ever want to be someone like Mamouru, either like him or like someone that he gravitated toward, but at that moment she just couldn't think of any convincing reasons why they were so different.

"Do you have to..." She stopped herself. "Fuck." She breathed, and buried her face in her hands.

Mamouru watched as Taylor seemed to be searching for something to say, deciding whether or not she should be angry or something else. He wasn't sure what he should say or do. When she buried her face in her hands, he reached out to touch her shoulder but then pulled back.

"I probably should..." He said quietly. He then turned when suddenly his eyes lit up.

"Actually!" He said in an enthusiastic tone. "There is something I need your help with. You're probably the best person to ask that I know." He said and hoped she would at least look at him. He wore a smile. "You see, Cassie-san needs some new entrance music and I think that you would be able to pick something that fits her. Or... at least point us in the right direction..."

Taylor made a pained face and dropped her hands to her thighs. She sighed. Regardless of whatever horrible melange of twisted, confusing, humiliating emotion she was feeling for and about Mamouru, she knew perfectly well that she couldn't resist the challenge.

"You're gonna get me kicked out of my apartment." She said quietly. She slid off the counter and padded in bare feet to retrieve her iPod from its place on top of one of the giant speakers. It was already connected to her stereo receiver, which she turned on with her toe while she began thumbing through her music.

While she looked, [url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q_C20oV2s4o&t=0m18s:bjc2opdd]she put on some music[/url:bjc2opdd] and rolled up the volume with her toe until the song filled the room. "This isn't a suggestion." She explained, having to raise her voice to be heard over the music. "I just like it. Cassie can't pull it off, anyway. I can." She added with a devilish glance and a little smirk. Her thumb rolled around and around, scrolling through her massive music collection while she swayed back and forth and danced in place a little bit .

"She's all about ska and stuff, kinda, and there's The Urge... They're a little more badass and less happy-ska. How about the song 'Drunk Asshole'?" She laughed. "Or even better, 'Identity Crisis'? Well... here's something, but it probably rocks too hard for her."

She pressed play and [url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q6J73rsZwYs:bjc2opdd]the song[/url:bjc2opdd] thundered out of her speakers, the low end shook everything in the tiny apartment. Taylor could feel it through her feet and in her chest. She loved that feeling.

"Okay, here's one for real." She shouted, and played [url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LrvwcnP4qw8:bjc2opdd]the next song[/url:bjc2opdd]. She couldn't help but grin and turned to face Mamouru and began a restrained little skank skip, and tossed her hair a bit. "This is so Cassie it hurts. But... not for this little 'I'm so badass' phase of hers. So..."

She moved on. [url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FdWsryENdZQ:bjc2opdd]She gave the next song[/url:bjc2opdd] a minute before [url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=az8UDe6UQGQ:bjc2opdd]moving on again[/url:bjc2opdd]. She laughed.

"Perfect! It's so Cassie." She said, and danced cutely while she kept looking. "Well, maybe..." She finally came around to [url=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=obV-OL3TwXo:bjc2opdd]Black Sheep by Metric[/url:bjc2opdd]. She gave it a minute to start up, her hips moving back and forth with it.

She looked up at Mamouru. "What do you think? Can she pull this off, or does she not have the swag?" She said while dancing more and more as the song vibrated everything in her apartment. It gave her a little flashback to that first day outside the club, dancing dirty and nasty to her iPod with Mamouru.