Chapter Text
She did it.
Tsubame Mizusaki had done it.
Was she happy with her decision? Of course she did. Did it surprise her? She doesn't know if there would be a right answer for that.
After sitting up, she grumbled. Mizusaki put her phone onto her drawer. She laid down on her bed, her figure resembling a starfish. She pushed the covers all over the bed up to her feet, not wanting to be that cold. It was an odd realization, really. How could it be possible to be warm when the temperature for the night is the opposite?
After that conversation with Kanamori, she doesn't believe she could sleep tonight. She can imagine different scenarios for the date to have (kudos to the shoujo animes she watched. They have prepared this young one well on the topic of love). A question lingered in her head, nevertheless: where would Kanamori lead her?
She doesn't see much at all in the ceiling except for the lights outside shining from her window.
---
It had been two hours since Mizusaki had started picking outfits. Was there a perfect outfit? And if there were, would Kanamori like it? She had been starting since dawn. And even though she had to take breaks such as breakfast, it did not do much for our main character. The train of thoughts made her overthink. It should be perfect! Or at least, be close to perfect.
"Hmm, what could be a good outfit?" Mizusaki said to herself. "No. No. Uh uh. Nope." She groaned as she leaned back her head. "For the love of God, Mizusaki, it's a date! Not a photo-shoot. I suppose Kanamori wouldn't care what I wear, right?" A frown appeared on Mizusaki's face as she moved onto the different combinations.
In the end, she decided on a white button-up with a black bow on the collar. It had cuffs on the end of its sleeves. To pair with it, she paired it with a black plaid skirt. She decided to use long black socks with white shoes. She let herself wear a black shoulder bag for her stuff, more specifically her sketchbook and her phone.
Before she left for the train station, her bodyguards asked her if she needed any assistance. She told her parents the night before about this date. They reluctantly agreed but that didn't stop her bodyguards to ask about her convenience. The only thing she allowed the bodyguards to do would be to drive her to the area of the train station. Kanamori and Mizusaki both agreed to meet near Kanamori's street. Though she had seen the glances of the bodyguards. they agreed to her request.
Now, it was 9 in the morning when she arrived at her destination. There were people hurriedly going to the station for their workplace. Some of them sat down at the benches, with one stranger sleeping to another annoyed stranger. She crossed the street when her phone vibrated from her bag. She went to a bench to sit down. A couple of glances and handshakes from her fans later, she got her phone to check the notification. A message from Asakusa greeted her.
Asakusa: Hi there, Mizusaki-shi! I heard that you were on a date with Kanamori-kun. Kanamori-kun had been asking for some advice from me for your date. Can you believe that?
She had sent milk emojis after her message. Speaking of the tall lanky producer, Mizusaki looked straight ahead to check for the train leading to Kanamori's street before messaging.
Mizusaki: Actually, I'm right here on the train station. Currently waiting for the train to see Kanamori-kun.
Asakusa: I see! Oh, I hope you two have a good time! And if you could, maybe send a pic or two?
Mizusaki: You got it!
When the doors of the nearby train started to open, Mizusaki checked first before entering. She doesn't understand how or why but the thrill of seeing Kanamori for a date excited her.
---
When Mizusaki arrived and headed straight to Kanamori's house, her phone vibrated once more. She didn't hesitate to open up the message someone gave her. And surely enough, it was from Kanamori herself.
Kanamori: Mizusaki-shi, are you near my house already?
Mizusaki: I'm on my way. Why?
Kanamori: I'm not inside my house right now but you are welcome to stay inside.
Mizusaki: Without a key?
Mizusaki: Okay, hold on. Where are you?
Kanamori: Near my street. I had to do a job before doing this date. I'm sorry if this what you didn't expect.
Mizusaki: O-oh. Are you almost done?
Kanamori: Yeah. You can see me if you want but I don't have the most stylish of clothes on me as of the moment.
Mizusaki: I'll do that instead of breaking and entering your house.
Kanamori: Here's my location.
Mizusaki had been relieved that it hadn't been an address. Otherwise, she'd waste much more time and get lost on the way. But now, she could only hope that Kanamori would not be inside a dangerous job for the eizouken.
---
When she arrived from what Kanamori's icon can show, she went through the in-between of two apartment buildings. Not much could be seen from the lack of sun. The only thing she could smell would be the decaying trash from the trash cans populating. This could be a good reference to draw alleyways, though. The thought got away as she saw a figure crouched down. She squinted her eyes for a bit before recognizing who the figure was.
"Kanamori-kun?"
Mizusaki walked closer towards the figure. The figure looked hard on her before nodding. What Mizusaki noticed were the many boxes and containers laying in the area. Some of the containers have dried fish in them. Others were just water.
When she finally got closer, Kanamori had her figure slightly turned away from Mizusaki. Mizusaki caught a glance of the plastic gloves Kanamori wore. One hand had a cup full of cat food for the cat in front of her. The cat had a black coat with green irises. It had reminded Mizusaki of a movie she had watched before of a young witch and her feline friend. The similarities had been uncanny to the point that she had been smiling to herself.
Kanamori, however, wore a dirty shirt that had been thrown with some pants and shoes. She had tied her hair to a bun with her glasses. She couldn't care less for appearances now. Her main priority would be to feed the cats, not model for them.
The cat meowed before eating his food. Kanamori sighed. The cat didn't finish his food but he let himself purr against Kanamori's leg. Kanamori glanced at Mizusaki before gesturing to her to crouch down as well. She patted the cat's head.
Mizusaki didn't realize her hands were folded 'til she let one out of its place. She hesitated to pat the cat, with her hands curling up onto itself. Kanamori felt Mizusaki’s hesitation and said, "Go ahead, he's friendly."
She let out a small noise before letting her arm drape next to the cat. The cat meowed and just purred against her touch. Mizusaki smiled. She turned to Kanamori, who was observing as the cat enjoyed Mizusaki's presence.
"Kanamori-kun, why were you doing this job?"
"I heard from my sister that one of our relatives would go out of town. They had been wanting to go out for a long time now but couldn't because they do not know any caretakers willing to take care of the cats. So when a business trip needed them to visit somewhere, they had been desperate to find a helper for the amount of cats they took in." She watched the cat get back to his food. "In return for the service, they promised money." She smirked.
"How many cats do they have?"
"Around six."
"That's a lot of cats, Kanamori-kun. How did you manage to do all these? And where are the other cats? I can only see one."
"The other cats are likely outside this place, strolling. They love roaming around the streets for the fun of it but they recognized this alleyway as their home. As for giving each cat food and other services, it was time-management." She scrunched her eyebrows as her right hand held her chin. "Though, I couldn't say it had been efficient. I had to give the cats that were present some food before other stray cats would eat them."
"O-oh." Mizusaki stood up and looked at all the boxes scattered around. "Is this where they live?"
"Yup." It was Kanamori's turn to stand up. Mizusaki could hear a faint crack from Kanamori's back when she stretched. Kanamori breathed in relief. She removed the plastic gloves off her hands and put it onto a nearby trash can.
"Let's go, Mizusaki-shi," Kanamori said. The walk to the street had been silent. Mizusaki had been looking around the area, taking the new area in. Kanamori decided to break the ice.
"Sorry for dragging you along. I'd have to go back to my house to change my clothes. Unless you want me to go with you on these clothes?"
Mizusaki laughed. "Isn't that where we were supposed to meet? And it's okay, Kanamori-kun. I don't mind at all."
"Thank you. In return, I shall treat you to a small snack after I'm done."
Mizusaki gave her a small smile, "Aw, you don't have to."
She turned her head and smirked. "I'm a stubborn individual and you know that."
Mizusaki giggled. "Classic Kanamori-san."
Kanamori let herself focus on walking towards her house but Mizusaki swore she blushed for a bit.
---
After taking off their shoes, they went inside Kanamori's house. It had been dark with the exception of some light shining through.
"Oh! Kanamori-kun, you forgot to get your money from your services."
"Huh? Oh, don't worry. They gave it to me in advance. They know I never go against my word."
"I see." Kanamori nodded before going to the kitchen. Before she could do that, Kanamori turned to Mizusaki, who had been standing all this time. She had scrunched up her face at her.
"Don't just stand there. Make yourself at home," Kanamori said.
Mizusaki let out a tiny squeak before apologizing. She sat down on one of the brown pillows, looking around the new area. Kanamori brought in a teapot and a teacup. Mizusaki began to get the teapot but Kanamori held out a hand. She kneeled down and poured the tea for her. Mizusaki had her mouth agape from the gesture.
"Wow, Kanamori-kun. You're not always like this," Mizusaki said, the smile never went away after.
"Who said I can't be? I'm just here being polite.” She got up from her place and stopped at the door frame.
"I'll be back."
Mizusaki hummed in response as Kanamori closed the door and went back to her room down the hall. She came here before with Asakusa to visit a sick Kanamori. But there had been nothing in her head except to see the state of her friend. The only thing she remembered from that visit was a bottle of milk, her sister, and a distinct memory of Asakusa waving a leaf in front of Kanamori (because she knew that Kanamori couldn't do anything with the situation given).
Now that she had been inside her living room, she realized how spacious the place was. She took it upon herself to sit down on one of the brown pillows. The pillows surrounded the short brown table. On top was the tea Kanamori had prepared for her. Mizusaki let herself finish the cup of tea before she made the motion her grandmother used to show her as a kid. Make it go in circle motions first, she had said to herself. But there was no place she could throw the tea in so she left the teacup there. Mizusaki remembered the distinct memory of getting the motion right. But the thought vanished as she focused on that one light ray in front of her.
The sunlight shined from the window. It landed on the flat television on the wall before the last of its rays landed on one of the photos below. Mizusaki blinked before moving toward the photo frame. Beside the frames were other photos of family portraits and other intimate pictures. She would have to go over those pictures soon but she couldn't resist to check the one frame in her hands. Try as she could with taking in as much details, she let herself take a picture with her phone for a future reference of a family (or blackmail, but Mizusaki doesn't have the heart to do that). Maybe she could send this to Asakusa later on.
Inside the picture frame is a small Kanamori with winter clothes. Kanamori held the envelope they gave her. She bore no emotion as her relatives tried giving a genuine smile to the camera. Compared to her relatives, Kanamori could only measure up to their knees. They took the picture in front of a convenience store. It made Mizusaki wonder if this were the store that Kanamori had mentioned on that one day.
Speak of the devil and they shall come. The same principle was applied to Kanamori's opening of the door frame. Mizusaki turned her head and her breath hitched (not from Kanamori, mind you; Kanamori scared her). But Kanamori dressed in an outfit Mizusaki never thought she would.
Kanamori put her glasses on top of her head. She had worn that button-up that she wore when she promoted the animation for the fair. But it had been covered with a white blazer that stopped by her thighs. She got herself some jeans and some black boots to complete the outfit.
"Mizusaki-shi, put that photo frame back on its place or so help me," Kanamori grumbled as she looked up to the ceiling. Her hands had been on the pockets of her pants.
"Kanamori-kun, why didn't you tell Asakusa and I you have a picture of Minimori here?"
"Because, Mizusaki-shi, I have parents that are not afraid to share their children's past."
Mizusaki can hear her footsteps getting nearer to her now. She stopped next to Mizusaki. Mizusaki's heartbeat got louder for a moment. It hadn't always been like this always but somehow, Kanamori made it that way. And because of the close proximity Kanamori and Mizusaki had, she could notice the different details in her outfit. And was that a fragrant perfume she smelled?
"You had changed a lot compared to her." Mizusaki can't help but hold the young Kanamori next to the face of the present Kanamori in front of her. She had developed the sharp jaw growing up. The eyes of the young Kanamori had been bigger. And Kanamori now had more freckles than the young one in frame. But aside from that, she could also see how she didn't change much as a kid. She still had the emotionless face on her. And yet the love of money never wavered from all these years.
"Hrm. Aside from physical appearances, the Kanamori before you is smarter and better at Math than that punk could do."
"Eh? But you have heart, Kanamori-kun!" Mizusaki placed her index finger onto Kanamori's chest. "And you already had the mindset since the beginning." Kanamori just stared at her and flicked her forehead lightly. She smirked and rolled her eyes at Mizusaki's overreacted reaction: two hands holding onto her forehead with an exaggerated pained expression.
"Oh, I'm hurt. Kanamori-kun, I can't believe you." She put a hand over her forehead. "You had betrayed me. With even the likes of you."
"See, I hate cliche moments like these. Don't make me do it again onto your forehead now. And come on, I finished budgeting for today and I still owe you a snack."
Mizusaki grumbled. "Alright. But I'm still coming with you just for that snack and that surprise place you told me about."
"Deal."