"YOU BASTARD! What have you done to my grandson?"
My grandfather roared as he lunged toward Detective Han, not even noticing Harvey.
"What are you talking about, kid? Hey, hey, hey, old man, calm down! I swear, I didn't lay a hand on your grandson! That little shi—your grandson is lying!"
With Han's frantic denial, my grandfather stopped a few steps away from the detective, who had backed himself into a corner. Grandpa turned to me, his face full of questions, looking for an explanation. You want to play with me, Han?
"AAH! What are you talking about, man?! You turned off the microphones and cameras so there'd be no proof of you beating me! Of course, you're going to lie and cover it up. Are you saying I broke my nose against the table?! Are you CRAZY?"
"Mhm…" Harvey let out a small, almost disbelieving sound at my words. Tch, aren't you a lawyer? Act like the cockroach you legal scum are!
That shift in Harvey's tone was enough to bring Grandpa's focus back to Han, though he still had doubts. Seeing that he hesitated, I decided to give him one more push.
"Ojiichan… sniff… I-I…" I said, my voice cracking as I covered my eyes with my arm, trying to become that little boy who cried when he lost his parents.
Seeing his grandson cry, Grandpa no longer hesitated. He charged at the detective once again. Hehehe, you're up, Han. Let's see how you get out of this one.
"LAWYER, tell them what happened, dammit! I didn't lay a hand on your client!" Han shouted, his voice shaky as Grandpa closed in on him.
I turned to Harvey, and so did my grandfather, who had only just realized the lawyer was in the room. I glared at Harvey, my arm still covering my face, giving him a silent warning: DON'T screw me over. Shut up.
Harvey seemed to understand. Avoiding Han's gaze, he muttered with a guilty look on his face, "I… just… can say that I'm still Sora Inuzuka's lawyer… and apparently an accomplice." The last word barely escaped his lips.
Hearing this, an evil grin spread across my face, though I didn't show it. Perfect. Time for the final nail in the coffin.
"Ojiichan," I sniffed, "when I was scared of what the detective might do… (sniff) I remembered your wise teachings about Yu/Courage, Jin/Compassion, Rei/Respect, Makoto/Honesty, Meiyo/Honor, Chugi/Responsibility… and that's how I've endured this difficult situation…"
"You'd be proud of your grandson!" I added with a trembling voice, tears and snot running down my face as I forced the most innocent, pure smile I could muster.
Grandpa's expression changed when he saw me like that. He no longer hesitated. His doubts disappeared, and he became the protector I needed, not the one I deserved.
RUMBLE (thunder crash)
MUHAHAHAHAHA!
With imaginary thunder cracking in my mind, I turned to Detective Han, knowing Grandpa was no longer watching me. My expression shifted, turning cold as I said, "Above all, Grandpa, I remembered Chugi: having said something means it belongs to us, including threatening someone's loved ones… and facing the consequences."
My eyes locked onto Han, who immediately realized what I was talking about.
You bastard. I haven't forgotten that disgusting smile you had when you named and threatened her. I thought, as I turned to leave the room, making space for Grandpa to unleash the beast.
Seeing this, Han panicked. Grandpa now stood right in front of him, looking like an oni, a Japanese ogre.
"No! Wait, YOU LITTLE SH—WHERE DO YOU THINK YOU'RE GOING?!"
"OI... Who are you calling LITTLE SHIT? You better not be talking about MY GRANDKID."
"No wA-it, HELP!"
PAAK (door closing)
HMMLNNP (muffled scream)
With that, I left the room, Harvey following close behind. Before the door closed, I caught one last glimpse of Ojiichan grabbing Detective Han by the neck, shaking him like a ragdoll.
As we stepped outside, closing the door behind us, I came face to face with…
"Aoi-Obasan! You won't believe what a showcase I got! The price was just right!"
PAM! PAM! PAM! (banging noise from inside the room)
I gave Aoi-Obasan a kiss on the cheek and a quick hug, as if we couldn't hear the chaos happening inside. Han, you really shouldn't have turned off the cameras.
"Sora… look at your nose. What a mess you've made… Did it really have to come to this?" Aoi-Obasan asked, frowning in concern.
"Tch, how do you know it wasn't Grandpa's new friend, the pig detective?"
PAM! PAM! PAM!
"Because I know you, little one. And so does your grandfather. I'm sure he figured it out the moment he saw you."
"But… when we saw you and Judy in that truck, with the NCPD shooting at you—even if it was just the tires—for us... well, let's just say we might have developed some resentment against the NCPD."
"And seeing you willing to go this far, to throw yourself into such a mess just to set your grandfather loose on that detective... it says a lot."
Aoi-Obasan gently placed her fingers on my nose and, with a quick movement…
Clack!
MHMMMMMMM (muffled scream)
"Ugh, that hurt worse than when I broke it!"
"Damn it, Grandma, WARN me next time!"
"Let me introduce myself properly," Harvey interjected. "Nice to meet you, Aoi-san. I'm Harvey Spencer, personal attorney for your grandson. Sora is understandably upset by the threats Detective Han made against his girlfriend, Miss Judy Alvarez."
"Tch, good thing Cyglee's paying you. Otherwise, I'd let you spend your time chasing after GMILFs." I was still distracted by the pain in my nose, muttering without thinking. "Oi, Harvey, stop slacking and get my girlfriend out too. I'm tired and want to go to bed."
I didn't realize what I had said, nor had Harvey. But Aoi-Obasan certainly did.
"Shit."
"Ara-ara! You and Judy? Don't tell me you two are… KYAAA! I have to tell Ainara!" Aoi-Obasan squealed, excitement lighting up her face. "Quick! Where's the interrogation room where Judy is, you GMILF hunter?"
"S-she's in room three with the newly appointed 'Detective' River Ward, Mrs. Hakate!" Harvey stammered, completely blindsided by the GMILF comment. "Phfhaha!" I chuckled as Aoi-Obasan practically skipped away, heading for Judy's interrogation room.
The mention of Ward's name reminded me of what Han had said earlier and how Harvey managed to slip into the observation room.
"Hey, Harv, how did you get Ward to stop guarding the door while Han was spewing his crap?"
"S-she called me a GMILF hunter?" Harvey mumbled, still shocked. "Well, Detective Ward's pretty easy to manipulate. Just a few words about how his partner would be impressed if he got a confession before him, and poof! He left the door unguarded to go interrogate your girlfriend."
Pakk (door bursting open)
"KYAAA! Granddaughter!"
"Aoi-San?"
"Hey, old lady, what are you doing here, shouting like that?"
"Grandma Aoi?"
"YES, little girl, I'm your grandma! Come into my arms!"
"Wait, wait, wait… WHAT?"
"Ara-ara, Ainara, it's done! I won! They're together!"
"W-what!"
"Peter, shush!" Ainara said, smirking. "Wow. I thought they'd at least wait until they were sixteen. Guess I was wrong about that Asian blood having any effect."
"Th-this… Excuse me, but we're in the middle of an interrogation, and I'd appreciate it if any family members could wait outside." Detective Ward appeared flustered. "This area isn't permitted for civilian staff… you know?"
"Not that I mind you standing here doing nothing, Ward," I said, grinning, "but why don't you take care of what you're supposed to?" I pointed to the room where Judy was, signaling for Harvey to work his lawyer magic.
A few minutes later, we all found ourselves standing outside the Watson precinct of the NCPD. Harvey was about to say his goodbyes, handing me the contact information of Cyglee's current CEO, who apparently wanted to talk to Jackie.
As we said goodbye to the Alvarez family, with Aoi-Obasan and Ainara joking behind our backs, Peter went to his car and brought out Eco, who looked exhausted, probably running out of battery.
Peter also handed me back my Airb, which I had left with Eco.
Finally, we said our farewells and headed home. It was clear that an awkward conversation awaited us, to say the least.
Before getting into her grandparents' car, Jud gave me a quick kiss on the cheek, her face flushed red from embarrassment in front of my grandparents.
And of course, my grandparents couldn't resist.
"Ara-ara, how adorable!" Aoi-Obasan cooed.
"Sora, you scoundrel!" Grandpa laughed, clearly in a much better mood after playing with his new "friend," Detective Han.