Joel drops me off at home, and my mother leaves to pick up Sophia from school. After Mr. Lombardi returns from work, dinner's over, and I'm in my room taking a break from homework when the doorbell rings. Since packages get delivered until about eight and someone downstairs can get it, I don't pause my video of a white girl in England pulling a prank on her Korean boyfriend.

"I'm so happy to see you," my mother says. She doesn't ever yell excitedly like that, not even for relatives. I pause the video to listen. "She's in her room. Go on up."

No one would come this late to visit Sophia. And my mother wouldn't greet a spontaneous visit from Joel like that. Or send him to my room.

I stand and face my bedroom door, confused and ready for anyone. A moment later, Sophia and Cynthia talk nearby, close to the top of the stairs. No wonder my mother yelled. Cynthia became a superstar when my mother heard she doesn't like my father.

I stare at the moody band poster on my closed bedroom door, wishing I knew Cynthia's game. Out in the hall, she lets Sophia go on about something. Maybe she found out about Joel and came here to accuse him of sleeping with desperate runaways. He's a teenager himself, and lots of girls want to sleep with him. He doesn't have to pay for it. Lots will for free, including I guess me.

Finally, I hear a knock on my door. "Come in," I say, attempting to roll nonchalance and proof I'm a  bon vivant together into a neutral, I've-been-fine-without-you voice.

Cynthia closes the door behind her and stands with her feet hip-distance apart, like she's ready for a showdown with magic spells. She's still in her school uniform, which is a lot like mine except the shade of green is lighter. "Hi," she says, relaxing her stance. Unlike the last time I saw her, the skirt covers most of her thighs. "Up here." She frames her face with her hands and smiles.

She's making jokes, so I do my part. "Sorry, have your thighs changed?"

She pulls down on her skirt and grimaces like I'm rude - pretends to grimace. "Let's talk."

"Okay." I offer her the choice: bed or chair. It's not quite old times, but it could be - maybe. She heads to the bed, changes course, and plows into me for a hug. "Sorry I ghosted your friend," I say. "He's nice..."

"I hope you two can hang out without being weird about it," she says, holding my hands.

"I hope you and I can."

She jumps backward and lands on my bed. "I can." She pounds her legs on my bed like they're drumsticks.

Good, we're back. I pull the chair from my desk and turn it toward the bed. I don't think my mother will actively listen, but I point at the door. She'll accidentally listen if we let her. "I'll try not to be weird, but I'm an awkward girl," I say.

"No, you're not." Cynthia's always matter-of-fact. "You're like a CEO sometimes: direct and practical."

"I am?" I sit straighter.

Cynthia laughs. Her long, dirty blond hair falls in her way. She pushes it behind her ears and shoulders. I never forgot her blue-green eyes, but they're unusual and striking, and I forgot that. She speaks quietly. "I was nervous when I did that in front of you and your dad."

"I bet." I pull the chair even closer to her, so we're in a soundproof bubble. She may not be here to apologize, but I don't think I need one. She's my impulsive, passionate, crazy friend, and I respect that.

She sits up on the edge of my bed like she has something to tell the principal. And that's me. "Okay...," she says, taking a deep breath. "I saw your father in Hiroo about an hour ago. He came looking for me."

That doesn't sound good. Except right afterwards, he and I haven't talked about what happened with Cynthia. As far as I know, he still doesn't know I know her. I don't know what he thinks Cynthia was up to, but he doesn't know it could be about us and not him. "Was he scary?"

She can't sit up any straighter, but she freezes in surprise. "No, not at all. He was meek, like I scared him." She laughs. "He was the one who asked me to intercept you guys that day in Jiyugaoka. He wanted me to exonerate him. He's worried you're angry about those two girls who ruined your first dinner, the one with your parents and Sophia. He thinks you think he touched those girls."

I'm not sure if we should keep talking about him and them, not if we want things to stay calm between us, but so far so good, I guess. "Did you tell him why you lied? Did you tell him it was because you saw him with that bald Yakuza?"

"Basically, yeah, I told him." Cynthia stretches out her legs and tucks them under her butt. Then she stares at me, waiting for my verdict.

I have lots of questions, like what did he say?, but answers aren't more important than being friends again. "Looking back on it, it's funny." I get up and open one of my bureau drawers. "Do you want your underwear back?"

"Gross, you saved it?"

"Of course not." I laugh and close the drawer. "Did you tell my father we know each other?"

"No, it's too good a secret."

Oh, I agree. It's also easier if she didn't. "So what happened? You don't seem angry with him anymore."

Cynthia bounces up, almost onto her knees. "So, I told him about Nobu, and he seemed genuinely shocked. I mean, he's more emotional than most adults, don't you think? Your father reacts and cares." She moves from the edge of the bed to the wall, to get more comfortable. I'm amused, because my father can charm the pants off anyone, even Cynthia. She doesn't even pick up on what I'm thinking. "He's going to investigate," she says. "He wants to do something about Nobu, and I think he'll really try."

I don't know what she thinks he can do. He's a photographer who cares about people, but he's busy right now promoting the Gears CD and his photography exhibition. He's not exactly an artist, but he's not a fighter or cop either. "One of my father's friends is an FBI agent, and he's coming to Tokyo for my father's photography show, which is in a few days. Maybe he'll tell him about it."

"He didn't mention that. I hope so. Does your father's friend have contacts in the Japanese police?"

"I don't know." We stare at each other. So I jump onto the bed beside her, and we hug again. "I missed you," I say.

"I missed you too."

Cynthia looks at my door. "I was hoping you'd sleep over my house tonight," she says, louder.

"Tonight?"

She puts her finger over her mouth for a second and wiggles her eyebrows. "Yeah. I slept here last time. Will it be alright with your mom? Can you pack some clothes and go? It'll be fun?"

I jump off the bed. "Okay. Let's ask."

***

My mother trusts Cynthia too much. After all, it's a school night. I also feel guilty, because she's more pliant since my famous father is around. She shouldn't worry, but nothing I say will keep her from thinking it's a competition. I can't change her.

"I love you, mom," I say while lugging my school stuff and more out the front door. I don't know what Cynthia has in mind, but I doubt we're heading to her house. That's the address she gives the taxi driver though.

"Wait here," she tells the driver and me. She brings my stuff into her house. When she comes out, she's changed out of her uniform and into comfortable jeans and a baggy sweater. I wonder what her parents must be like, letting her go at all hours, but I'll have to find out another day. "Roppongi Crossing," she tells the driver.

I'm worried about the Yakuza, but I'm curious too. "What are we doing?" I say.

"Hunting demons." She means the black cloud I saw in that car in front of my house. She means that black cloud the boy and I saw in that Porsche. She means the black cloud I see in my head.

The demon kills runaways and teenage prostitutes. I've seen it, from inside my head, from inside its head?

I pull out my phone and text Joel. "What are you doing?" Cynthia says.

"I met a guy."

She grins and looks me over like way to go, like I'm too hot for words. "A boyfriend?"

I look up from the screen. "Not exactly, not really, kind of." I shrug and try not to smile too much as I read his message. "But he wants to hunt demons with us."

Cynthia doesn't need to think about it. "Okay. Cool."

Cynthia is back. How do you feel about that?

Did you expect them to head out in search of the demon?

Thank you very much for reading Quiet. I hope you are enjoying it and take the time to star this chapter!