A Year of Jubilee [The Death Note Fanfic]

Chapter 26

Twenty minutes later, Matsuda still had not returned, and Jubilee and the other models were hard-pressed to keep the men from noticing that fact. For her part, all the men whom she had talked to so far were now giving her a wide berth. She used it to her advantage; coming near with a smile and a wave so that they stayed busy trying to get away from her. But one could only hold up such a ruse for so long.

How long does it take L to give Matsuda the plan over the phone? Jubilee thought anxiously, gritting her teeth. Maybe the other task force members weren't in position yet, and they were still waiting. Either way, she could see that some of the men were starting to get restless.

"Hey," said a man in glasses beside her, looking around with a frown. "Where is—"

The man was about to ask about Matsuda, she just knew it. In an act of sheer desperation, Jubilee turned and threw her arms around him, knocking his glasses askew. "Jesus loves you," she whispered into his ear.

The man looked bewildered. "Well, hello there," he said, awkwardly disentangling her from himself before slipping his glasses off his nose to clean them on his shirt. "Had one too many drinks, did we?"

"Just high on the Spirit," she said airily, feeling ridiculous. Where was Matsuda? It was time to end this absurd charade.

The man raised an eyebrow. "Is that a drink?"

She laughed weakly, then patted him on the shoulder. "No, no. Something much, much better."

He just gave her a confused but agreeable nod, and started to look away again, putting his glasses back on. Hurriedly she stuck out her hand. "I'm Julie."

He turned back to her. "Mido," he responded, shaking her hand. He seemed to really notice her then. "Ah, you're the foreigner. The others have been calling you 'the missionary model.'"

"Have they?" she asked. She didn't know what to do. This man didn't seem as put off by her act as the others had.

"Yes," he said. "I have been hoping for a chance to speak with you all night, so that I may ask...how does one who believes what you believe, do what you do?"

She felt herself go cold. "What do you mean?" she asked warily.

Mido raised his hands placatingly. "I mean no offense, Miss Julie. I simply ask because, lately, there have been things I've started to believe in as well—especially with all of the unfortunate Kira attacks. It has begun to make me question the things that I do. One must be ruthless to succeed in business; that is what we have always been taught. The same has been said for your industry, show business. But...what if that is not the way?"

She stared at Mido. Was this some kind of trick?

His eyes looked earnest. Above his head a thick, steady line appeared. She felt a strange but calming warmth suddenly whisper through her heart.

"That is not the way," she agreed quietly.

He gazed back at her, dozens of questions in his eyes. But he asked only one. "Then what is?"

Her mouth went dry. This she had not bargained for. Someone taking her seriously had not been part of the plan. In the man's eyes she could see all of his questions, doubts, and fears regarding Kira and the role that he himself had played in the murders so far. She saw all this not through her own eyes, but through the warmth that was still tickling at her heart. But she didn't quite know what to say to him.

"There—there is one Way, and it is Truth, and it is Life," she said haltingly.

"The way of God," suggested the man. It was a question.