Chapter Text
Three weeks ago…
"Dad, is this the place?" Chihiro says through the phone, and he swaps the camera to show what should be the forefront of their house. There's static and some loud beeping noise blaring throughout Chihiro's phone speaker and he grimaces, putting a distance between him and the phone. Then, Kunishige's face comes into view.
"Yup, that sure is the place!" He cheerily exclaims. The background is all noisy and unbearable to listen to—Chihiro would consider dropping the call, but it's his dad, and he'll take anything he can get considering how busy he is with the family business lately. "Your mom took lots of care of that place before she moved back to her family's estate, so don't make a mess of it, alright?"
Chihiro heaves a sigh. "You know I'm not like that, Dad," he mutters absentmindedly, and Kunishige laughs on the other side, and Chihiro can do nothing but look fondly at his dad through the screen. "I know, I know. Just make sure to make good friends now that no one knows you here, alright? I'll be terribly sad if I visit you one day and you don't even have a single friend in your contacts!"
The man groans, red painting his cheeks as he hides his face with his hands. He almost considers turning the camera off. "I'll try," Chihiro says, and Kunishige laughs again. "That's more like it!"
Chihiro smiles, waving goodbye to him. "Take care over there, Dad."
Kunishige smiles at him. "You take care over there, kid. I'll send you some extra money once I'm done with work today, alright?"
"Okay," Chihiro mutters. "Bye, Dad."
"See you, Chihiro!"
The call ends, and Chihiro sighs to himself as he puts his phone in his pockets. He fishes for his keys and inserts them into the knob, door opening with a click.
It's been thirteen years since he set foot in this city, and a lot of it had changed. What didn't change though was his mom's attention to detail. Nothing remained out of place—the place was essentially pristine, and anything prone to dust had been covered with plastic for good measure. The lights were all off, but one flick of every single switch out there had all of them lighting up one by one, functional without a hitch.
Heck, the air felt fresh, even for a place that had been left alone for a month now. His mom would have stayed in this very house along with him—but she had to move out since she was finally finished with her old workplace, and she'd gotten the offer to work as a representative of her family's firm—a renowned lawyer finally joining their ranks.
Chiaki had fretted over him greatly when he brought up his desire to move back into the city; Kunishige had taught Chihiro plenty of skills to be able to live on his own just fine, sure, but she was still going to worry over her own child like a mother would.
Chihiro grew up without much problem; besides the one incident that triggered his switch from the city to the countryside, nothing truly went wrong for him. He guesses he can thank his uncles for that—and that one boy he met once and never again. He can't remember their face that clearly anymore.
Focus, you need to focus…
He sets his luggage down, bones and muscles aching in tandem as he finally gets to stretch his back. It'd been seriously a long trip—even if it was just about less than six hours, the amount of luggage he'd brought himself from the countryside to the city itself was plenty for someone making the trip solo. His uncle did help him, but it was only with the financial side; paying for the tickets, the movers who carried some boxes before sending them off to a shipping service to be further boxed up and delivered at a later date—those were less important things, sure, but they still cost a pretty penny. Chihiro's just thankful he doesn't have to pay for literally anything.
Make sure to follow the rules your parents set, and don't do anything that'll hurt them, Akemura had said to him, albeit awkwardly as Chihiro gave him a nod and a small smile. His mom's side of the family were more on the quieter side—Chihiro wondered how his Mom fell in love with Dad sometimes.
Chihiro sighed. Why was it that he was getting distracted so easily today? He doesn't even know what's gotten into him today. Maybe all that sitting and then moving and then sitting and more moving—wrestling with everyone in the streets to make sure he hadn't hit anyone with his luggage was… more of a pain than Chihiro would like to admit, but at least he's here now, finally in the place he wants to be in.
He looks at the entire space along with the luggage on the floor, and decides it's all he needs to focus on for now as he lays out what he can on the floor. He closes the front door, locking it twice just to be sure before quickly heading for the spare room that used to be reserved for guests.
"I guess it's time to unpack…" Chihiro mutters to himself, blinking away the fatigue. "Let's do this then."
Chihiro can't take any more of this.
He'd arrived at their place at 6AM in the morning.
It's 2 PM now.
His bones are screaming, his back needs a break, and honestly, Chihiro is starting to forget why he even moved back here in the first place—college, his mind supplies, and Chihiro wishes he had moved back in a little sooner. Maybe he could even have Shiba help him… But that would mean bothering a busy man like him, and god knows where the man actually was. It was hard to pinpoint where he was in the world—he'd been used to messages from all timezones at this point from the man he considered an uncle, even if they weren't related by blood.
Chihiro felt his vision double for a moment. Sweat dripped from his forehead and onto his chin, and Chihiro thinks he feels absolutely filthy—maybe he just needed to surrender for a bit and take a shower…
Chihiro decides he can have a break, and then looks at his other phone. It's been completely shut off for a while now, for good reason—it's the phone he uses for his other life.
His streaming life.
There's no way around it. Chihiro is a person who likes a certain degree of separation in the things he gets himself into. He's quite the private person; even moreso than his mother, much to his father's grievances, but his mother would only laugh at his father's woes, before praising the boy for following her example. Something about knowing how to protect himself—he was still young, and bad influences could stray him off the path. Still, though, his parents loved him enough to trust him fully in how he operated his life online, as long as he'd remember to come to them for anything he had trouble with.
He didn't need to, though. Chihiro knew what he wanted to keep private and what kind of crowd he wanted to have. The types of friends he wanted and needed—he wouldn't be hurt so easily now, unlike back then…
Don't think about it too much, he thinks to himself, wiping his sweat away. His streaming phone glows, and before he knows it, he's lowering the volume from how many notifs he's gotten. He opens his Twitch, and he winces when he realizes it's been almost two weeks since he's actually streamed at all. He opens his Twitter and furrows his eyebrows when he sees too many notifs for his own liking—
His personal phone starts bringing, and he opts to let go of his streaming one for now. He still has to set up his equipment anyway.
Mister Shiba is calling…
His eyes widened, and without a second thought, he picks up the call. "Mister Shiba? It's been a while," Chihiro says, but all he hears is static before—
"You brat! I had to hear the news from your dad about moving back to the cities! Why didn't you tell me?!" Shiba bemoaned, voice teetering on the edge of a fake cry. Chihiro felt himself sputter, sweat beading in his forehead. "I just—I just didn't want to disturb you—"
Shiba doesn't even let him finish. The request for a video call goes through. Chihiro accepts.
His first thought when the video finally loads is, well—
"Mister Shiba, no offense, but you look absolutely horrible," Chihiro deadpans, and Shiba wails this time, and Chihiro wonders where a man pushing his forties gets this level of energy to act like a baby. Makes so much sense that he and dad are best friends… Chihiro thinks to himself, and Shiba looks at him like he's been personally wronged, like he's reading his mind. Chihiro knows he can't though, so it's just Shiba trying to act like a petulant child to get him to apologize. Unfortunately, Chihiro knows him too well, so a smirk is all he gives, and Shiba groans as he runs his hand through his hair.
"I don't care about how I look and neither do you! You could've dropped me a call, the time and date, where you wanted to go and I woulda dropped everythin' for you, twerp!" Shiba barks at him through the call, and Chihiro is thankful that he's inside the house now, because Shiba's voice is just so loud. He thinks he could wake up the entire block even if he's just talking through his speakers.
"And that's exactly why I couldn't have you help me, Shiba-san," he says calmly, exhaling a sigh, "I didn't want to trouble you when my uncles helped already with the travel expenses moving to the city. Also, I thought you were in America?"
Shiba laughs. "Nah, nah, I'm back in Japan! Just forgot to tell you, that's all. You know me—being under your mom's family's company is hard work."
"Just another reason to not call you to help me, then," Chihiro says. Shiba looks at him like he just killed his grandma. "What are you, your mom?!"
"Half of her, yes," he sasses back, and Shiba only groans in dismay. "You're becoming more and more like Chiaki, seriously," the older man says, and Chihiro can't help but let a laugh bubble out of his throat. Shiba sighs at him, shaking his head. "I learn from the best," Chihiro replies, and Shiba's face twists into an annoyed scowl, but it quickly breaks as Shiba laughs at him.
"Enough about that," Shiba sighs at him. "I'll visit you, okay?! Don't you dare say no!" the man says, and Chihiro can't even protest as the call drops immediately. He guesses either his mom–or his dad sent the location to his place. Shiba shouldn't be far; after all, he's in Japan now.
He stares at the empty desk, smiling when he notices the cable management of his router being absolutely pristine. There's multiple outlets too—perfect for everything he needs. He glances at the one box he hasn't opened yet, and smiles to himself.
He supposes he can take a shower before setting up. Shiba might just get to his door by the time he's done.
There's a knock in the door, and then—
"Chihiro!"
"Coming, coming!"
Thankfully, he's just finished showering ten minutes ago. He's already in the middle of drying his hair, towel hanging on his neck as the blowdryer does its work. He turns it off, before heading to the door.
He gets engulfed by Shiba's towering figure over him, and he almost coughs when the older man slaps his back as a form of another greeting. "Shiba-san, you're hugging too tight—"
Shiba quickly lets go of him, scratching the back of his head as Chihiro sighs and almost closes the door behind them, but his attention is piqued by a crate.
"Is this yours, Shiba-san?" Chihiro points at the crate, and the older man bolts to pick it up quickly. "It's a long story, let me settle in because I actually have to leave quickly later," he says, and Chihiro's brows furrow in confusion, but follows him nonetheless as the door closes behind them.
They sit down in the living room. "Do you need food?" the boy asks, and Shiba puts up a hand, stopping him from standing up to grab plates. Chihiro sits back down, albeit confused. Shiba looks at him, before collapsing onto the table—then quickly rising up again to face the boy.
Chihiro sometimes wonders how his social battery doesn't run out with the older man.
"Nope, nope, I've had too much food, I'm gonna throw up if you feed me any more," the man replies quickly, shifting in his seat, "This crate—it's got Hinao's nephew's new pet!"
As soon as Shiba says those words, the crate is opened, and the cutest cat comes out walking, white fur and blue eyes taking almost all of Chihiro's attention. He's distracted by the cute little thing—it's so cuddly and friendly, immediately warming up on Chihiro's lap as he pets it.
Something else makes him immediately halt though, but the cat is still lounging on his lap. Chihiro looks back up at Shiba. "Wait, Miss Hinao? She's here?"
Shiba laughs at him. "She's been here for a year now! She actually has a coffee shop five minutes away from the university you're studying from."
"But then why—"
"The cat? They're for Char. You saw the kid already, right? She's staying over in Hinao's place until things get better," Shiba says, spinning his keys on his finger absentmindedly. Chihiro continues petting the cat this time, falling silent as he thinks things over. Char was a kid with parents that went missing in action—Hinao had apparently found the kid sleeping in front of her doorstep, and there was no one to take care of her. He hadn't actually seen the photos of the kid yet, but he'll let Shiba assume otherwise because it didn't matter much whether he'd seen the child or not.
"Mkay. I'll take care of the cat, and I'll visit the coffee shop later," He mutters, and Shiba nods at him.
There's a comfortable silence that lasts for barely ten seconds before Shiba decides to break it again.
"I'm glad you're back here now, you know," Shiba mutters, not looking at the boy. Chihiro pauses, his hands absentmindedly resting on the cat's belly. He looks back up and sees the older man with a pensive look in his eyes.
"… I'll be fine, I promise," Chihiro mutters, trying to sound calm, even if the incident they're both talking about brings up some unpleasant memories. He tries not to dwell on the past too much. "I've learned a lot from everyone since then."
Shiba sighs, crossing his legs as he leans back further into the chair, a frown plastered on his face. "Just 'cause you're all grown up now doesn't mean we won't worry about you anymore, you know," the man said, grumbling in slight annoyance. "Even Chiaki was worried about you. Said she'd move back here, even if she had to not work for her side of the family."
Chihiro looks up at him, confused. "Did they… reconcile? I don't really… ask Mom that kind of stuff," he trails off, brows furrowed. Shiba shakes his head. "It's complicated. Let's just say she's found her own way to deal with them."
Chihiro smiles softly, the cat purring in his hold. He looks up at Shiba. "That's the Mom I know… but still, Mister Shiba, you should've told her that I promised everyone that I'll be fine. I have Mom's business card with me—the new ones," Chihiro replies, and Shiba sighs in exasperation, crossing his arms.
"Just because your Mom's a lawyer doesn't mean you can just go around threatening legal action, you blockhead," he chides, pointing at him with his index finger. The cat yawns in Chihiro's lap before deciding to jump back on the table, pawing at Shiba's finger. Chihiro laughs.
"What do you take me for? I'm not that childish anymore," he replies, and Shiba shakes his head. "Just take care, alright?"
"If I had a shot for each time everyone in the family told me that, I'd be drunk by now," Chihiro mutters under his breath, and Shiba narrows his eyes at him. "You're drinking already?"
Mortified, Chihiro shakes his head immediately. The cat meows again and jumps onto Chihiro's shoulder, making the boy wince in mild shock, but he holds the cat still, making sure it doesn't fall off of him accidentally.
"No, no, not at all," he sputters, nervous. Why was everyone so fussy over him? He's turning nineteen in two months. They should trust him a little more—what was the point of living alone if it meant everyone was going to be micromanaging him? It just didn't make sense. Chihiro exhales, choosing to look at the cat on his shoulder who was now licking its paws. They're a bit heavy on his shoulders, but at least they hadn't attempted to bite Chihiro yet. What a good temperament this cat has…
Shiba laughs at him, breaking his focus, bringing him back to the present. "Relax, relax, I'm not one to pry on that. As long as you only do it with trusted friends, alright?"
Chihiro wishes he could facepalm today. "Yes, yes, I promise, I remember everything everyone told me… Are you leaving soon?"
Shiba pauses at the question, then stands up quickly, like he'd just remembered he had said that in the first place. "Shit! I gotta go meet Azami today, I promised him! By the way, here's the spare keys to Hinao's place and the directions—go visit the cafe today, alright?!"
Chihiro stares at him dumbfounded as the keys get thrown onto his grasp, and the man is out of the house before he turns back around—
"And if you're going to stream, message me as soon as you can!"
Chihiro turns beet red. The last thing he wanted his neighbours to know was that he was streaming at all in the first place. He hopes nobody heard any of that. "Just go, Shiba-san!"
The man disappears fully, slamming the door shut. Chihiro breathes in and out three times, the cat still lounging on his shoulders, and only does he remember now that he had his towel on his shoulders too. He sighs as he thinks about the amount of laundry already piling up. He hadn't even gotten around to washing his clothes.
When he glances at the cat though, it's like his stress goes away. It's a docile little thing, never having misbehaved for the entirety of the stay so far. He gives the cat's head a small scratch—only now does he realize that the collar around them has a name engraved on it.
Haku
"What a cute name… Hm… Haku, get down," Chihiro says with squinted eyes, the cat staring back at him now. Miraculously, the cat goes down his shoulders, landing onto the floor as it stares back up at him, like they're asking if they did a good job. Chihiro can't help but let a smile form on his face. He still has a lot to do—he hadn't gotten out all of his things unpacked yet, finding himself somewhat distracted and sleepy from the early trip he'd taken—maybe he'd go get a coffee from the cafe that Shiba had mentioned Hinao owned.
"Good job, Haku," he whispers, kneeling to pet the cat before scooping them in their arms, going back to the room where he'd place his streaming set up. Looking at Haku, he scratches the cat's head a few more times, before finally deciding to continue working.
"Just a few more adjustments…" Chihiro muttered to himself, brows furrowed as he fine-tuned his programs and double checked his settings. The cat sat still on his lap, remaining perfectly content to lay down on his lap. He opens his streaming phone again, finger already hovering on Shiba's contacts.
from: Goldfish Samurai / to: TPShiba
>> shiba-san, streaming in 5. it won't be longer than 10
from: TPShiba / to: Goldfish Samurai
>> just an announcement today?
from: Goldfish Samurai / to: TPShiba
>> yeah. i'm still not finished fixing up my stuff, and you're with zami-san. don't want to take up too much of your time.
from: TPShiba / to: Goldfish Samurai
>> you're seriously the best ;D
Chihiro puts the phone down, opening his account, looking at his offline chat. He sends a little fish emote in there, and sure enough, the ones already chatting there immediately perk up, like hounds presented with a piece of meat. Messages start flooding the chat, but he closes the tab, mouse hovering over the stream button.
from: Goldfish Samurai / to: TPShiba
>> streaming now
He starts the stream.
He waits for a few seconds, multiple names flooding the stream already. He sees familiar names—Azami, Shiba, and even Hinao. He sees Hinao's whispered message in a small tab, and it's entirely in capital letters, so even though he should really answer her, he closes the chat window.
He opts to ignore Shiba and Azami's pings at him for now though, and the chat is flooded with greetings from everyone, walls upon walls of crying emojis, and even more messages welcoming him back. They're all wondering where he went—after all, Chihiro liked to keep up his schedule of streaming at least once a week, but it had almost been two weeks since he streamed. If he had streamed any later this week, it'd turn to three.
Sue Chihiro for liking some sort of routine. He's missed sitting down and just interacting with people who constantly tune in to his streams.
There's more messages welcoming him back, but a certain chatter catches his eye with one message.
>>StorageKeeper: hello samurai!! your mic sounds kinda weird!
A smart cookie… Chihiro thinks to himself while smiling. Haku wakes up for some reason, placing its paws near the keyboard. Chihiro pushes his keyboard back, careful not to hit anything on the back as he pets Haku some more.
"Oh, hi, Storagekeeper. Yes, the audio is a bit different. That's actually what I wanted to talk about today," he begins, taking in a deep breath as he considers his next words carefully, "I just moved into a new place with some help from my uncle, so that's why I haven't streamed lately. I barely got my set-up together, but I didn't want to worry you guys too much."
It's not the entire truth, of course, but it's not a complete lie either. He supposes he didn't need to reveal more than what he already did; out of respect for his family's reputation in their profession and the business they were all involved in, especially his mother and father—the very least that he could do for both of them was keep them private. It was already miraculous enough that they supported him in being a streamer in the first place. The chat whirs some more with messages of understanding, along with well-wishes for him to rest properly and take it at his own pace.
Haku yawns, and then quickly grasps Chihiro's arm. Chihiro tries to keep the stream quiet, cranking up the noise cancellation option just a bit more. He'll just have to sacrifice a bit of quality if it means the cat's noises get picked up less. Unfortunately though, people are perceptive. He exhales into the mic before he even knows it.
"Sorry, everyone, my cat's a bit fidgety today," Chihiro mutters, running his fingers through Haku's fur and shaking them a little bit. Haku only looks at him for a split second before they lick their paws. Cheeky, aren't you…
The chat gets flooded with questions about the cat. As far as his viewers knew, he didn't have a pet—until now, obviously. He supposes he can indulge them today since he's been away for so long.
"No, it isn't my cat technically, it's just… It's my friend's nephew's cat. Let's go with that," Chihiro says, glancing back down at Haku. Haku just stares back at them absentmindedy, belly exposed and everything, and when Chihiro doesn't place his hand on Haku's belly, Haku begins to meow constantly. Chihiro looks at the cat like it just wronged him.
The chat though, unfortunately, really likes Haku. Haku's cries seem to soften the man—and he ends up letting out a soft laugh, his free hand petting the cat's belly. The cat quiets down. Chihiro thinks whoever this kid Char is—they'll love this cat lots.
Unfortunately though, this stream is just a short announcement, and not exactly a stream to show off Haku in the first place. He puts the cat down onto the floor without much struggle, and Haku only looks at him before flopping onto the ground, licking its fur this time. Chihiro looks back to the stream, and his phone rings with a short message from Azami.
from: ZamiorNothing / to: Goldfish Samurai
>> me and shiba are going out soon
Chihiro straightens up. Right. He needed to visit Hinao too and fix the rest of the luggage that he had left over still. He looks at the chat, and they're mostly just randomly chatting with each other, letting Chihiro speak at his own pace. The cat—well, Haku, paws at his legs, and Chihiro exhales, leaning onto the mic.
"Anyways," Chihiro mutters, glancing at the calendar he'd marked up earlier with specific dates, "Mm, I'm planning to go to college soon, so I'm afraid streams will be slower than usual."
The chat spams crying emojis. He can't blame them for being sad. "I'll make sure to still stream at least once a week though, since I do enjoy doing this."
The chat spams happy emojis. He stifles a soft laugh at the quick turnaround of the reactions. "I'll be off now, everyone. I still have some things to handle. I haven't had coffee for today too, so I'm a bit tired. Sorry about that, and thank you, everyone. Until next stream."
The stream end screen quickly takes over the display, and Chihiro mutes himself as he leans back onto his chair. His streaming phone rings, and there's multiple messages both from Azami and Shiba—and even more messages from Hinao. He turns off the stream for real this time, and then shuts his computer down as he opens his phone to check the contents of the messages one by one.
from: TPShiba / to: Goldfish Samurai
>> your dad made an account to watch you finally btw, here's the name
>> xXKuniXx
>> i know the name sucks trust me i've tried. i've tried. he won't change it. don't make that face i know what you think of it already
Chihiro feels himself cringe at the name before he knows it. He'll keep the name in mind though, if only to make him VIP next time so the old man can chat all he wants if he ever manages to catch a stream. He doubts it, but still, better safe than sorry. He checks Azami's messages next.
from: ZamiorNothing / to: Goldfish Samurai
>> shiba's battery ran out so i'm messaging on his behalf. what a dumbass
>> he said your mom made an account too
>> CS329
>> also, i'm just saying this on my own, learn how to balance your streaming stuff with college, yeah? shiba's told me lots about it already, but i'm saying it anyway
Chihiro purses his lips. Everyone is seriously treating me like a baby…
Not only that, but his mother and father can watch and chat on his streams now. He's not sure how he feels about that. Sure, he'd been scolded once or twice for cursing under his breath, but he knew both of his parents were more than what meets the eye.
His dad might as well have been a natural social butterfly, but he was aware of the people he made friends with. His mom, on the other hand, even though she exuded an air of dignity and demanded respect everywhere she went, she was also quite the rulebreaker, even being more of a menace than his dad, Shiba, and Azami combined. And as parents—they were a mix of both, which only made Chihiro's head hurt.
All that to say—they hadn't actually seen what he did on stream yet, only relying on Azami and Shiba's stories from time to time, and whatever they could catch of him whenever they were coming home from work or going inside his room for multiple reasons. He doesn't know what they'll actually think of him once they see another side of their son in full.
He shakes off the thought for now; he won't know how they react until it actually happens. He opens Hinao's messages next.
from: CherryHinao / to: Goldfish Samurai
>> YOU IDIOT CHILD
>> WHY DIDN'T YOU TELL ME YOU WENT BACK TO THE CITIES?????
>> I DON'T HAVE THE CHOCOLATE CAKE SLICE SPECIALS READY FOR YOU!!!
>> you better be taking good care of haku, okay? i'm talking about the cat, if you haven't checked the nametag yet. or noticed it at all. char will cry if she doesn't see haku. you guys can meet next week, i think azami should be helping her pack up stuff tomorrow. i'm still trying to find a good place for char that's near the cafe so it's been taking a while
>> also, here's the address to my cafe
>> and a picture of the storefront just to be sure. i don't know how good you are with directions
>> [image]
>> also, i think you'll recognize the barista i hired
>> not telling you the reason though figure it out yourself
Chihiro sighed to himself at how many messages the woman had sent. She was the chattiest of them all, only second to his dad, it seemed. It did surprise her that Char seemed like she wasn't in Hinao's place just yet, but it made sense if Hinao didn't want the child lounging around the cafe that was full of strangers. He saved the photo of the cafe, before shutting the stream down fully.
He thinks Haku can behave—the cat hadn't attempted to push off anything, and there weren't any plants in the house so there really wasn't anything to worry about, so, he heads to his closet, quickly grabbing a black shirt from his bag, throwing on a matching jacket and pants. He grabs his necklace laying by his desk, attaching it with ease before looking at himself in the mirror again.
"Good enough," he mutters to himself, before giving Haku one more pat in the head, grabbing the keys on the way outside, pulling out his phone and scrolling for Hinao's contact again on his personal phone this time.
from: Chihiro / to: Miss Hinao
>> I'm visiting now, Haku's well behaved so he's in my place
>> What do you recommend for a drink?
Hinao's response comes quick.
from: Miss Hinao / to: Chihiro
>> just get an americano, you're gonna need the energy to handle your luggage
>> i'll treat you sometime soon, i'm busy fixing some machines in the cafe myself rn
>> treat my new hire well, okay? he's had the job for six months now but he's a scaredy cat sometimes still
Chihiro laughs, pocketing the phone. Thankfully, it's just a ten minute walk to where he lives now, so getting there isn't hard. The heat isn't too unbearable today. He spots the cafe from afar, and his eyes widen when he sees a tuft of white hair and blue eyes—
"Hello, what can I get for you?
Chihiro squints. Maybe he was just imagining the similarities? The barista's name had Hakuri on their nameplate. Something about the man on the counter reminded him of something, but he couldn't put his finger on it. Maybe he reminds me of Char's cat… Wait, no, that's not it…
Chihiro's almost tempted to ask a question or two, but in the end, he chooses to hold back from doing so. It'd probably weird him out, anyway, and Hinao's words ring in mind again.
Treat my new hire well, okay? He's had the job for six months now but he's a scaredy cat sometimes still.
He looked up at the menu, hands on his pockets as he looked over the entire menu. He could take his time all he wanted, it seems, since there wasn't anyone behind him. All of the names were unfamiliar though—until it lands on the Americano that Hinao had been talking about. It looks plain, unassuming, and he'll trust Hinao's selection, so he gets closer to the counter, wallet in hand already.
"Just a large Americano, please," and the barista—Hakuri—nods. "What's the name?"
Chihiro pauses for a second, glancing down to the floor. What a nice voice this guy has. Good for streaming… Miss Hinao would probably want him to focus on being a barista though, since he's an employee and all…
"Chihiro," he breathes out. Hakuri smiles at him, one hand gesturing him to the open space. "Thank you, you can sit anywhere you want. It'll take a bit since our machines are messed up."
"It's fine," he says, and turns back around.
Chihiro takes a seat near the windows, noting the decor, and how nice the cafe is. There's a lot of customers, but all of them are mostly quiet, working away at their laptops and phones and even notes. He pulled out his phone again, opening Hinao's contacts.
from: Chihiro / to: Miss Hinao
>> Your cafe is really nice
>> Also, I don't fully understand what you mean with the barista
>> Is it because the cat has their colors? I don't really think that's what you meant though
His phone quickly rings with messages from her.
from: Miss Hinao / to: Chihiro
>> my cafe BETTER be nice, i spent a pretty penny on it
>> hakuri? huh, i thought you'd get it immediately lol ngl
>> also, if it was that easy, i would've never told you about it in the first place
>> it's fine, maybe you'll remember later on
>> did he mess up or anything? anything you don't like in the cafe as well?
>> btw pretend we don't know each other, i don't like people being snoopy about me when i'm working here. got it?
Chihiro purses his lips.
from: Chihiro / to: Miss Hinao
>> If you want me to leave a review on your cafe in websites, just say it straight up already
>> I still don't get what you mean with Hakuri, but he's a nice guy. He's gotten the hang of the job. The cafe is great as is.
>> Did Mom help you with the details? Some of the decor feels like it isn't what you'd pick
>> And okay, I'll do as you say. I get it
There isn't a reply back in a minute or two, so Chihiro assumes the woman's still working on whatever's broken, so he looks up, and just in time, Hakuri's setting his order down on the table, a smile still on his face.
"Here's your order, thank you for waiting!"
Chihiro holds the cup, turning it around to open the lid—and pauses when he sees something unexpected.
"Oh," is all he says. Hakuri looks even more nervous now, eyes darting back and forth. It seemed like the barista hadn't planned on drawing the cute looking goldfish in the cup; he supposes it was because of the goldfish in his shirt. "I'm, uh, sorry? I just saw the goldfish print and thought it was really nice, and um—"
Chihiro feels a smile forming in his face, but he suppresses it, only because he wants the boy to calm down first. He sets the cup down, staring up at him. "Thank you." Hakuri immediately shuts up, and he takes it as a sign to immediately continue. "The goldfish is cute. Thank you for drawing it."
Chihiro thinks Hinao has a good eye for employees when Hakuri bows down to him, a smile on his face plastered once more. "Thank you for patronage!"
Chihiro nods to him again, but the barista doesn't see it because they're being called over by Hinao. There's a few more messages now from her this time, and he stands up from his seat, cup in hand as he walks out of the cafe. He catches a tipping container just right before he leaves though, so he places his cup down, grabbing a piece of sticky note and writing Hakuri's name in it, dropping a few paper bills in tandem before he drops it off the container, neatly folded with his choice of words for the barista. He leaves the cafe now, cup in hand as he takes a sip, face cringing at just how bitter it is. There's even more messages now from Hinao, so he checks it this time.
from: Miss Hinao / to: Chihiro
>> you better leave that review since you already tipped my barista >:[
>> and that's good to hear, hakuri's a good kid
>> miss chiaki did help but you do know my tastes arent THAT bad, right????
Chihiro can't help but roll his eyes. He scrolls down further.
>> anyways, enough about that, azami just said he'll be able to get here with shiba in a few days with the rest of char's stuff. they found a place to rent for a few days to stay in since they said they didn't wanna freeload off of your place lmao
>> shiba will definitely visit you first with the kid though so just be on the lookout for that, 'kay?
>> i'm sure your fans can understand a little delay in between some streams ;D
>> also wow i'm not sure what you said entirely on the tipping stub but my barista was blushing
>> no dating unless you tell us about it first!!! okay!!!
Chihiro's midway to sipping his drink when he reads the last line, and then he's nearly choking on the coffee, eyes widening in shock as he thought of the barista again.
The coffee is incredibly bitter, his throat hurts, but when he thinks of Hinao's cryptic words about the barista—and those eyes with that hair…
It couldn't be… him, right?
He never liked guessing games, and yet Hinao had roped him into one. The lady always knew something that most people never did, and being a barista herself meant she was good at remembering and observing people. If Hinao had given him this crumb to him—and even insisted on it, then there was only one way Chihiro would be able to figure things out.
He takes one look at the cup of Americano, still hot on his hands, scalding his throat, and he feels his gaze focus on the goldfish drawing. It makes him chuckle softly.
"I guess I'll just have to keep visiting the cafe... and him," he mutters to himself, thinking of white hair and blue eyes as he makes his way back to his place.