Escapism Ch.V. part one

“Doing origami again?” he whispered in the soft skin of her neck.

“Mhmm...” she murmured pleasantly, her dainty hands never ceasing shaping the paper into a beautiful creation.

“It helps me relax...” she continued quietly, her amber eyes focusing lovingly on her task and a deep sense of calmness washed over every nerve in her body.

A low chuckle came from the junction between her shoulder and neck, the electric vibrations eliciting a shiver from the pale woman seated on the sofa. The French doors from the balcony were opened and a light fresh breeze clutched at the lace curtains, the light streaming through the windows creating spectacular reflections of nature upon the white-paneled walls of the room. The soft reddish glow from the sunset engulfed their forms and she inhaled the woodsy scent coming from outside as a pair of lips began to leave a trail of kisses up to her ear. Closing her eyes, she submerged herself in the sensation of his coarse hair rasping over her sensitive skin, her work being pushed far back into her mind at the wonderful feeling.

“Hmmm...I could lift you to new levels of relaxation..” he murmured lowly, his breath brushing over the shell of her ear, eliciting a shiver from the blue haired woman.

“..Is that so?” she inquired in a whisper, her pale fingers combing through his spiky hair, craning her head to gaze into his intense eyes. The brief visual contact was like a caress, warming her cheeks and heart and with a shuddering breath she lifted her face slowly to brush her lips against his in a gentle kiss. Pulling slightly apart, she pressed their foreheads together, drowning herself into his gray depths, the little smile curling upon his lips making her heart soar in elation. And she swore then and there, in that moment of warmth and contentment, that his smile was one she couldn`t live without.

---

Konan rubbed at her eyes wearily as she leaned out the window sill, letting the cool breeze whisk across her face. She peered at the barely illuminated clock in the hallway and sighed. It was only 04:45 in the morning.

The early morning was quiet and undisturbed as everyone else in the close vicinity continued to rest peacefully.  The only hint of the impeding sunrise being the slight tinge of pink that had crept along the horizon.

She stretched her neck and gazed down the street tiredly. It was empty and filled with silence as moths and other insects encircled the street lamps. Everything was so still. But after some time, muffled voices sounded from a distance and her amber eyes took to scan the environment for the source of the sudden noise until they came upon a pair of inebriated young men, stumbling their way home from yet another drinking evening at the pubs it seemed.  She watched somewhat amused as one of them tripped over his large feet and successfully collided with a trashcan, the crashing sound reverberating in the quiet morning. The other one was trying to help his wriggling friend to get up whilst himself was gripping a lamppost for dear life in a feeble attempt to keep his balance.

The sight was quite comical. A bulky man writhing sluggishly on the ground like a walrus on dry land while his scrawny partner was stretching his arm rather dramatically in a “hanging over the cliff” fashion.  After a few minutes of intense struggling, the clumsy man was up to his feet sputtering and wheezing from the effort, and the pair proceeded to stumble away in drunken laugher while singing tavern songs about heartbreaks and women with beer breasts.

She sighed softly, closing her eyes and resting her head on the window frame. The sound of the murmuring waters tickled her ears, soothing her exhausted mind a little. She`d read once about hydrotherapy and its effects upon the human mind. Whether it’s a babbling brook, waves breaking onshore, the steady rush of a waterfall, or the drumming of a rain shower, the sound of water is unprecedented in its ability to calm insomniacs or stressed-out individual`s jangled nerves and lull them to sleep. The secret to water sounds’ relaxing effects may lie in the primal rhythms they contain, which helps people regulate their breathing, quiet their minds, and call forth memories of blissful time they’ve spent in nature.

Certain repetitive sounds have the opposite effect water does. These noises include dry autumn leaves, hard-packed snow, or loose gravel crunching underfoot...and she was rambling in her mind...

Konan released a deep breath, her half lidded eyes staring unfocused at the city encased in dusk. Her mind was exhausted and she was in need of a good rest, but she was afraid to even try to go back to sleep….she was afraid that once she fell asleep, an amalgam of dreams, of aching memories will assault her frail psychic. By day, it was easier to block them out and push them into a dark corner of her mind, but by night, her subconscious was adamant to torment her with long-lost recollections. It would have been easier if she could only wipe them away with a sponge and forget they ever existed. But unfortunately, real life doesn`t work that way.

Some early risers were already mounting their boats on the canal, some birds hidden in the dense summer foliage began to chant a symphony of songs. Taking another deep breath, she tried to concentrate on the sounds surrounding her.

She could say this was one of her life`s simple pleasures, the rarity of the occurrence making the experience more pleasant. There was something about the bird songs that always conjured up imagines of spring, flowery meadows and baby animals bouncing around the greenish fields and all enhancing wonders Mother nature offers us...This was nature’s orchestra at its best.

Her eyes strayed on the clock again.

05:54

The world was starting to come alive… Bright streaks of red, pink, and orange slowly overcame the dark blue and purple of the twilight sky. The sky resembled a prism; all the colors blended perfectly into each other. The sun itself was just peeking out of the horizon, and its brilliant rays already shined brightly and began to warm the air.

Sighing softly to herself, Konan retreated from the window to her bedroom in a last try to get some sleep. Hopefully she was too fatigued to dream something.

---

“Ring ring”

Konan cracked her eyes open, wincing at the bright sunlight shining right on her form and she groaned softly. Her face was half hidden in the white pillow and she buried herself deeper into it, her body earning for more sleep.

“Ring ring”

More alert, she jolted and sat up supported by one elbow, blinking furiously as the bright light stung her eyes. Amber eyes surveyed the room in confusion, her head still fuzzy with sleep before reaching slowly for the blaring device on the nightstand.

Not bothering to look at the caller ID, she brought it up to her ear and pressed the answering button.

“..Hello?” she answered quietly in a raspy voice.

“Have you forgotten me missy?”

Konan`s eyes widened slightly at the familiar voice of her friend.

“Tayuya...no, of course not..” she mumbled sluggishly, propping herself up in a sitting position.

“Oh? And here I thought you abnegated me. You little minx.” came the response, the woman`s voice being filled with mirth. “By the way, I loved the postcards you sent us, along with the gifts. Especially Itachi, he`s quite taken with the necklace. Very fancy.”

A small smile decorated the blue haired woman`s lips. “I`m glad to hear that...”

A few fumbled sounds and the distinct crash of pots and pans resounded from the other line, along with a few chosen words from the volatile female.

“Damn it!...just stay still will you?” came her muffled voice, sounding as if she was battling with home appliances.

Konan chuckled to herself, already guessing what the rose haired woman was up to. “Sounds like you are preparing for an upcoming war.”

“I might as well be...it feels as if I`m on an alien base here...” came the grumbled reply “...sigh...Tachi just got promoted and I thought I`ll surprise him with a fancy dinner...if only those stupid machines would cooperate with me!!”she huffed exasperated. Another crash sounded, followed by a pained yelp.

Konan`s eyes widened slightly at the news, ignoring the rambunctious noise in the background.

“Oh? I`m so happy to hear that. Pity that I can`t congratulate him in person.” she uttered sincerely, shifting her body so she was in a more comfortable position.

“I`m sure he doesn`t mind.” the woman replied reassuringly “He`ll get enough attention as it is. Tomorrow Kisame is organizing a barbecue in his “honor”...there`ll be a lot of buzz, I`m sure.”

“Kisame is back in town?” she asked, surprised at the unexpected news, perching up on her pillows. From what she had heard, the man was occupied with studying the coral reefs and marine systems across the Western Australian coast for more than three years by now.

“Yes. He`s staying till the New Year`s. Apparently a furlough was very much needed.” the voice turned into a grumble “And of course, first thing he does is to find an excuse to get smashed. Men...”

Konan smiled at the obvious disapproval in Tayuya`s voice. Despite her being a bacchanal, she didn`t tolerate alcohol too much, arguing that it`ll only succeed in making you look like a complete fool.  The blue haired female couldn`t agree more.

A long groan sounded from the other line.

“And the worst part…Kin is coming too. The bitch will turn my head into a hexagon with all her yapping.” her voice turned venomous at the mention of that particular brunette. There was an unspoken rivalry between the two women (who used to be friends...well, kind of), more from Kin`s part since Tayuya couldn`t care less about the other ones thoughts. Ever since their days at the Music University when their professor deemed Tayuya having a much finer ear regarding flute performance, Kin, feeling scorned, took it upon herself to surpass her in every possible way, not missing any opportunity to make her life miserable. Be it in the form of cattish remarks, temper tantrums when things wouldn`t get her way and even attempts to make her jealous by flirting with her beau`s. One would think that after all these years this grudge would have no meaning anymore. Talk about immaturity.

“I have no idea how Sasori`s putting up with her...I would have suffocated her with a pillow by now.” the rosette muttered dejected that her fantasy won`t take place anytime soon “I guess he`s too far gone into his puppet world to even pay attention to the banshee.”

Konan shook her head at the bitter woman. “You know better than to be affected by these  pettish jabs.” she chided gently.

“Your resemblance with Itachi is scaring me sometimes.” the pink haired woman`s voice sounded among the sounds of rattling chinaware.

She heard a sigh from the other line, then the rosette`s voice became serious. “Putting that aside...How are you doing Konan?”

Amber eyes lowered at the inevitable question and stared contemplatively at the empty space, her pale fingers tugging lightly at the delicate embroidery of the duvet.

Really...how was she doing nowadays?

Was she alright?..sort of...Did she feel sadness deep in her heart?...at certain moments, yes…but the most important question...did she gain a subjective sense of control over her chaotic internal emotions and thoughts?...that was a tough one..

She supposed it was a little worrying that most of the time she felt largely emotionally numb, just observing life and walking in a cloud. She was aware it was a self-defense mechanism against painful reminders in order to gain control over her emotions. Seizing this control involved shifting the focus of her attention away from troubling thoughts towards something less troubling like the current city she was located, the people surrounding her and other activities she was slowly getting involved with. Other times the emotions were so intense that she spaced out to block them…but sometimes, she couldn`t even do that. Konan was far from being ok, but telling that to her friend was out of the question...it would be extremely selfish for her to ruin the perfect night deemed for celebration with her inner issues.

“I`m coping. The change of the environment is really helping me.” she answered quietly, forcing herself to take a more pleasant tone. It wasn`t as if she was outright lying, the change of scenery distracted her most of the time. She liked to think that she had disappeared from her life, at least only temporally...the gray world which was at the moment far away at the end of a long corridor, from where she can barely see it.

The rosette woman sighed in a forlorn manner “I hope it is indeed as you say.” she spoke with concern “I don`t want you to feel all alone there Konan.”

Koanan`s amber eyes softened at her friend`s words, feeling warmth spreading into her heart for her care and a little guilt for making her worry. At first glance, Tayuya appeared to be the kind of woman you wouldn`t dare to mess with, others may label her as a rigid woman but she hid a warm and caring heart beneath that frigid mask. Konan was proud to say that she was one of the few people who knew that bit of information and it was one of the precious things she cherished in her life.

“I assure you that I am fine and content here. You don`t need to worry about me.” she spoke gently into her phone and hoped her friend was convinced by her claims.

“As I said before, I really hope so...I know you go through a dark period and I can only imagine how hard it must be for you...I wish I could be there to offer the support you deserve but I know that you`re a strong woman and will conquer whatever comes your way.” came the emotional answer.  Konan bit her lip lightly, feeling overwhelmed from the sentimental words. It was a nice feeling knowing that aside from the family members, there was someone who cared for you unconditionally.

“I...thank you Tayuya…your care means a great deal to me..” she uttered in a soft voice, feeling frail all of the sudden. Her answer was followed by a deep silence which was broken a second later by an amused little chuckle “Look at us. Getting all emotional like a couple straight from a soap opera. Next thing I know, you`ll proclaim your undying love for me and whisk me away from Itachi...hahaha..” her friend laughed, trying to lift the gloomy mood.

The blue haired woman gave a laugh herself, finding the little scenario highly amusing. “I hope it won`t come to that. I wouldn`t want your beau to hunt me down and get revenge for his broken heart.”

Another peal of laugher came from the phone. “Have no fear my fair lady! You`ll have me for protection!”

Konan shook her head in amusement then her amber eyes glazed over with emotion “I`m glad that you called me Tayuya...”she spoke with sincerity in her voice.

“Anytime Konan...I really missed talking with you..”

Konan shared the same sentiments. She hadn`t realized until now how much she missed the long conversations between herself and her female friend. Being far away from home, it was getting difficult to bear the solitude…just hearing a familiar voice brought comfort to her heart.

“Oh shoot! Itachi is going to arrive at any moment and I haven`t prepared anything yet!!” the rose haired woman exclaimed suddenly, appearing utterly panicked and about to explode from the stress.

There was a deep inhale of breath before the voice spoke again hopefully “Do you think I could order some take out and pass it as a home cooked meal?”

Dark eyebrows furrowed thoughtfully at the question. “I am not completely sure, but usually the intention matters the most. He will appreciate the effort nonetheless. You`ll be fine, don`t worry.” she spoke gently, trying to soothe the anxious woman.

“I guess...ughhh...damn...I got to go Konan...sorry for cutting this short.” her friend stammered, seeming to fumble with some papers judging from the sounds of pages being leafed through from the other line...probably browsing her stack of take-out brochures for a decent catering company.

“I don`t mind. We`ll talk another time.” she answered lightly, trying to muffle a yawn with the back of her hand. The fatigue was still grasping her in its tentacles.

“Ok. Well, till next time.” the rosette chirped, appearing more relaxed now that she`d found a solution to her problem.

“mmhm...Take care.” Konan mumbled softly, receiving a faint “Bye” in return before hanging up.

Disposing of her phone on her nightstand, she lay back down, relaxing in the soft white pillows propped behind her. It was time for a much needed rest. Just when she was snuggled again in her lavender duvet, the ring of her cell phone startled her again.

Groaning at the sound, she reached once again for the blaring cell phone and without changing her position, brought it up to her ear.

“Did you forget to tell me something Tayuya?” she murmured sleepily

“Who the heck is Tayuya?”

Konan sighed tiredly at the boisterous voice piercing her eardrums. She could kiss goodbye her plans of resting to her hearts contentment.

“It doesn`t matter.” she uttered irked at the disturbance “What do you want?”

Her voice sounded a little rude even to her own ears but she was far too drowsy to care about etiquette at the moment. She could tolerate Tayuya calling any time, obviously, the woman was an exception...but he on the other hand was a thorn in the side when he wanted. Couldn`t he call at a more reasonable hour?

“Sheesshhhh....who pissed in your coffee?” the man barked, clearly feeling offended by the brash response “...as if I haven`t had enough of that already...Today a freaking idiot misplaced my delivery and brought me a tank of wheat beer instead of the stouts I`ve ordered. I swear that I almost popped a vein and nearly killed the bitch. Then the freaking idiots I`ve had the luck to hire, harassed me from all sides. Boss, the men`s toilet is clogged up! Do I look like a plumber or what? Take a damned toilet pump and get that shit out! The drunk from the other day refuses to go home, oh what am I going to do boss?? Just whoop his ass with a broom and be done with it jackass! I swear that I hired the most fruitcake people EVER! And now you! The heck is your problem woman?!? You on PMS or something??”

Konan sweat dropped at the melodramatic monologue. “Is there a reason why you called me?”

There was a pause filled with deep, harsh breathing....apparently he really pumped himself over there..

“Oh..yah..” he drawled, sounding as if he suddenly remembered why he called her in the first place “Care to hang out a little bit? some fresh air will do me good...I`ll be damned if I`ll stay around these morons one second longer.”

Konan groaned softly to herself, burying her face further into her pillow. She was way too fatigued to deal with his exuberance today. And since when was he so attached to her? He made it sound as if they were best friends already...

“Don`t you think it`s too early for that Hidan?” she murmured groggily, staring at the plain wall in front of her with a blank expression etched onto her weary face.

There was a dramatic moment filled with silence.

“It`s freaking two in the afternoon!” he suddenly blurted, succeeding in making her amber eyes widen in alarm “What the hell were you doing last night?”

Ignoring his query, the sleepy woman perched herself up on her elbow and squinted at the small golden clock sitting snugly beside the night lamp.

Very much indeed, it read two o`clock.

A deep frown marred her features as she stared intently at the numbers. If her dreams weren`t plaguing her so much last night, she wouldn`t have wasted so much time lying in bed. But it wasn`t as if she could control her subconscious.

“Hey! Did you fall asleep on me?” the man uttered suspiciously, effectively snapping her attention away from the clock.

“No.” she uttered quietly “And I`m not in the ideal condition to go out either.” she added as an afterthought, fidgeting with the end of her wrinkled shirt.

“Oh, common...don`t you know that a walk a day keeps the bastard doctor away?” the man told her in a cheesy voice, trying to persuade her in getting out of the apartment. Really, his ambitious nature was astonishing sometimes.

Konan smiled slightly at the moronic man “I think the correct phrase was: an apple a day keeps the doctor away.” she corrected him amused, receiving a flippant whatever in response.

“And my answer remains the same. I`ll just stay in today.” she continued, hoping the gentle approach would make him understand.

Hidan sighed exasperated “Could you be more boring than this? You`re acting like an old lady, seriously!” he sneered from the other line, unbeknownst to him, his words earning a quick eye-roll from the woman. “Besides, I have a frigging surprise for yah.”

Konan furrowed her eyebrows at the unexpected proclamation. “Surprise? What surprise?” she inquired lightly, being curious despite of herself.

“It wouldn`t be a freaking surprise if I told you...duh...” the man replied in a sarcastic drawl“ In a half an hour max I`ll be at the same place we`ve met the last time. Don`t be late Grumpy.” he said with finality, confident that she`ll not refuse him this time.

Konan blinked and when she was about to protest the line went dead. She glared hard at the blank display...that idiot just hanged up on her. And he dared to complain about the rudeness of  other people….Wasn`t he just a big hypocrite..

Groaning to herself, she sluggishly tossed the warm and comforting duvet away and stepped out of the bed. Might as well get ready- she thought as her bare feet padded away to the bathroom. She wouldn`t put it past him to somehow find her address and materialize in front of her apartment to drag her tired body around the city. It was a silly thought, but she`d rather not find him at her doorstep.

Turning the light on, she spared a look at her reflection in the mirror and frowned at her disheveled hair. Her appearance resembled that of a woman`s from the 80`s with a hairstyle gone wrong. She immediately started to battle with her ruffled locks, her brush tugging ruthlessly at the stubborn knots.-There!  Pleased with the result, her pale hand reached for the toothbrush and paste.

As she squirted the right amount of paste on the brush, her mind trailed off to other matters. The blue haired woman couldn`t for the life of her comprehend the workings of Hidan`s mind. He was as unpredictable as when they were younger, but this....this wasn`t normal. Konan couldn`t help but feel that he was trying a little too hard to be in her presence and this realization didn`t go well with her. Was she too paranoid? She thought as she absentmindedly scrubbed at her teeth. The woman admitted she had the tendency of shying away from human companionship and she was somewhat a social misfit, but even she could tell his behavior was way too odd to ignore. A normal person won`t rummage through her belonging only to get the hand on her number then pester her on all hours of the day. Then again, the silver haired man didn`t qualify as a normal person to begin with.

Rising her mouth and putting her toothbrush in its respective place, she turned to stare once more in the mirror. Was she being too judgmental? Or overanalyzing things?

Her thoughtful expression morphed into a deep frown.

Even if she used to go to the same school as him and had mutual friends, she still considered him a stranger...true, despite his infantile behavior and penchant for making fun of her reactions he was a fairly acceptable company…perhaps his cheerful demeanor was the only reason she tolerated him. But why did he insist seeking her out? She supposed he had friends he could hang out with? Right?

Konan was aware that she wasn`t the ideal person with whom you want to spend your free time with seeming that most people described her as a demure woman who didn’t have a fun bone in her body. This was the main reason why was she greatly baffled by his persistence to spend time with her.

Giving yet another tired sigh, she turned away from the porcelain sink and dragged herself out of the bathroom to change from her pajamas. She`ll duel about this matter when her mind wasn`t so fuzzed up from lassitude.

A quarter of hour later Konan glanced surreptitiously at her watch as her sandaled feet padded on the cobblestone sidewalk. She was ten minutes late already but she couldn`t find herself to care. She`d told him clearly that she wasn`t in the perfect condition to be a good company...and crankiness was the perfect word to describe her current mood.

Arriving at the Prinsengracht Canal, her amber eyes quickly scanned the area for the troublesome man only to come up with nothing. It was just like him, to demand promptitude only to be late himself.

Huffing in annoyance, she leaned her upper body on the railing since the nearby bench was occupied by an elderly couple and stared at the moving boats with a heavy lidded gaze. What would she have given to be in her comfortable bed right now instead of appeasing an oversized child`s needs.

Not long after she settled herself, a familiar voice reached her ears and she jerked awake. Konan blinked up at the approaching man in confusion, her head a little fuzzy. Strange, she didn`t realize she`d dozed off...

In the meantime, Hidan was yabbering away about something, gesticulating with his hands like a true Italian. Remembering her manners, she perked up her ears to comprehend what he was saying.

“...and didn`t have a choice than to help the fucker. So yah, sorry for the hold-up.” he trailed off then focused his violet eyes on her ruffled form and raised a silver eyebrow.

“What`s up with you? You look like shit, seriously.” he blurted gruffly, his insensitive comment earning him a hard glare from the woman.

“Why thank you. You look lovely as well in this sunny afternoon.” she bit out angrily, wanting so badly to wipe that smirk off of his face.

Hidan only laughed merily at her sarcastic comeback then turned to adjust the device he was currently grasping. Konan only then took notice of the object he was holding and raised one fine eyebrow at the sight of it.

“What is that?” she asked slowly, already fearing of the answer.

Violet eyes sparkled like one of a child`s on a Christmas Morning as he turned to gaze appraisingly at the wheeled piece of metal.

“This.” he patted the leather seat proudly “Is your new bike.” he finished with a cheeky grin as he presented her a deep blue flying pigeon bicycle.

Konan blanked at the new information. This was the last thing she expected to hear that day.

Coming back to her senses, she cleared her throat and gazed at the grinning man with an uncertain expression etched on her face.

“You do realize that I have no idea how to ride one, right?” she asked slowly, fearing the man was suffering from temporary amnesia. She did tell him, albeit reluctantly, that she had two left feet when it came with this particular vehicle.

Hidan only chuckled and shook his head in amusement at her daunted expression. “You see, that`s the best part...I`m going to teach you.” he proclaimed with the largest grin she has ever seen, obviously feeling pleased with himself. That statement didn`t bring comfort to her heart in the least.

“Absolutely not.” came her immediate response. She watched nonplused as the grin melted away from his face only to be replaced by a deep frown. Her negative answer kind of ruined his parade but she really wasn`t planning to die any time soon.

“You don`t really mean that.” he snorted after a while, ignoring her less amused expression then turned to face the innocent looking bicycle. As if...Konan knew better than to be fooled by that harmless display. With Hidan as her instructor, she was positive that she`ll not live long enough to see another sunrise after the first lesson...

“I lowered the seat so you can easily put your feet on the ground when you feel that you`re losing your balance.” the man blabbered away as he wheeled the bike closer to her rigid form.

“Alright! Hop up.” he instructed, once again, patting the saddle with an expectant expression on his features.

Konan stared at him dead-panned for a moment, thinking he was delusional for even believing that she`ll indulge him this time.  There was no way in hell she`ll touch that devil machine and break her neck in the process. Pursing her lips, she stared at him in defiance, daring him to go against her will. But the man stared right back at her, not batting an eye.

There was a tense silence, shattered only by a few birds chirping in a nearby tree.

After a few intense moments of staring contest, she sighed tiredly, rubbing her eyes in annoyance “You`re not going to let this go, are you?”

Hidan shrugged nonchalantly, an innocent look on his face.

Slumping her shoulders slightly, she let out another breath, defeated. “Fine...”

Where`s your fighting spirit Konan?

Where it was indeed...