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Osamu is two blocks away from the supermarket. He texts a line, “you owe me”, to Atsumu before shoving his phone into his pocket. It’s an incredibly busy day for him and there are plenty of errands to run. He’s still learning the ropes at a restaurant, but one day…one day he’ll have his own! He’s in such a rush he didn’t even have time to take off his badge! And if he’s so busy, why not put the errands off to another day? Well because every month on this day, the supermarket has its special sale. Sometimes it’s on all brands of rice, other days it’s on cleaning supplies. But today, it’s extra special.
You are one block away from the supermarket. You peek at the time on your phone before tossing the device into your bag. It’s not a good day for you, waking up with an awful crick in your neck. Your face is just a tad puffy from the excessive (but undeniably delicious) amount of sodium in the late-night “snack”, followed by a super long day at work. And why, is it that despite how awful you feel on this otherwise lovely day, you are dragging yourself to the supermarket? Besides the fact that your fridge is beyond empty, it’s of course because of the supermarket discount. Extra discounts.
Once you get past the sliding doors, it’s just mayhem. Voices echoing, people rushing everywhere. You’re lucky to pick up a basket that got pushed and forgotten in a corner. Somehow by following the waves of people, going along with the tide of the human sea, you manage to find yourself at the furthest end of the whole store. Absolutely not the snack aisle that you aimed to be at in the first place. You pick up a plastic basin and scrutinize the overly saturated hue. Do you need this? Ahh. You stack the bin back with its other friends and continue down the aisle hoping the other end will have some leeway.
Osamu enters and luckily obtains a basket from someone leaving already. He thanks them before going about to maneuver around crowds and goes to the vegetable section. But before he gets there, he passes through the snack aisle and sees a bag of rice crackers that he used to really like. Feeling a little nostalgic, he picks it up and looks at the same old packaging with the same contents. He and Atsumu used to fight over it, till the point their parents end up getting two bags and labeling them by each twin’s name. That never worked because Atsumu gave no shits. That reminds him, maybe he’ll get some pudding today too. The nice ones in the glass jar sold as a solo unit, not the three-pack.
As you make your way to the snack aisle from one end, while Osamu is whipping his phone out to take a picture of the snack to send to Atsumu, the loudspeaker sounds through the grocery store.
“Welcome to EMI’S! Your friendly neighborhood supermarket! Get your fresh greens! Your snacks! And all your home needs in one place! We’re having our monthly special event today and it’s a BIG one! Just today, couples get 50% off all fresh produce! And additionally, the first 100 couples at our register will also receive a deluxe voucher for a romantic dinner! Only while supplies last! One-stop to get your life together, only at EMI’s!”
Well shit, you’re alone. Couples. Couples. Couples. What sort of madness is that? It’s at this point that you are standing near the middle of the aisle, holding a snack in one hand and the shopping basket in the other, staring. The man in front of you is insanely attractive. Broad shoulders tapering down to an impeccable waistline.
Osamu mulls over the announcement details, repeating the keywords in his head. 50% fresh produce? Damn, that is really nice. He should hurry to the produce section and go get all the rest of his groceries. He sees you…sees a familiar packaging that you’re holding.
“Ah,” he points at your hand, “that one is really good.” He holds the one he just grabbed too.
His voice is pleasant and what you notice is that he’s alone. You flash him a grin, “I know! Even though it’s been so many years, the packaging design hasn’t even changed yet either. I can notice it anywhere.”
Osamu nods fervently, as though he has finally met someone of the same caliber, level of taste, as he. “The same company that makes it also came out with some new flavors, but I haven’t tried them yet.” He takes a few steps closer to you and points out the products on the shelves.
“Woah,” you take a step to get a better look, “Okay, maybe I’ll try something new today!”
From your current distance, you can easily see the inscription on the metal tag across his chest, Miya Osamu. He seems friendly. Come on just ask, you tell yourself. It’s not as though it is real. Not as though you’ll ever see him again. And if he’s alone, then it’s a win-win for both of you solo errand-runners.
“So—”
“Oh, those pudding cups are great!” He points out the glass pudding jars in your basket. “Where did you get them?”
You point behind you from where you came from. Right when you are also expertly about to add on your proposal to the end when Osamu’s phone rings. Alas, that’s how Miya Osamu, the fake boyfriend target zooms past you, screaming, “Shut up ‘Tsumu” into the phone and going for what looks like the pudding.
You sigh and look at your shopping basket. If you can’t get the discount, should you buy all of these? But you don’t come here that frequently and you do need to stock up. Ramen. Ramen. Ramen. Hm. Yes.
It’s been fifteen minutes after Miya Osamu walks past you, and now you are waiting in line for the cash register, behind a familiar person yet again. You recognize the dark t-shirt and shoulders; even with the subdued colors of the shirt, the fabric fits snugly around him and makes him look extremely handsome. Should you even bother to give another shot?
The current guests at the register are gathering their bags, ready to exit. A couple. Maybe it’s at this specific instance and visual reminder, Miya Osamu finally recollects the complete loudspeaker announcement. As if the store picks up his confusion, the loudspeaker announcement sounds again, “Welcome to EMI’s!”
Couples. COUPLES! Osamu wants to just scream. The couple leaves and the cashier waves a hand calling out, “Next in line.” Osamu panics, getting ready to give up and gather the monstrous pile of groceries he’s carrying and put them back where they belong, in utter shame and embarrassment. He wouldn’t have bought this much today if there wasn’t a special discount event. Hell, he even invited people over today…food on him. It’s okay, Osamu tells himself. He has big boy money now from his job, it won’t break his wallet completely.
Suddenly, he remembers how you wanted to tell him something earlier at the snack aisle. Seeing how you’re alone right now too, Osamu dares to consider the possibility that you were going to propose acting as a couple at the register. But Atsumu just had to call and disrupt things at the time. And it’s too late now because the cashier is right there and you’re looking at your phone lost in thought.
“Ah Y/N!” Osamu calls out, “It’s our turn.” It’s worth a shot, if not then he’ll dig a hole and just jump into it. He tries his hardest to shoot a look at you. Please play along. Please understand the situation.
You look up from your phone, confused at the voice calling your name. How in the world does he know?! What’s going on. Before you can even process your thoughts, Osamu comes by to take the basket from your hands and puts it on the belt.
“Aw! What a lovely couple! You two look absolutely adorable together!” the cashier granny coos.
The situation begins to unfold in the most bizarre way possible. Between nervous chuckles and each beep of items being weighed and scanned, you and Osamu stand in front of the register awkwardly. Pray tell, what kind of couple gives off the vibe of coming from the two of you?
“Got together not too long ago, huh?”
“W-what?” Osamu stammers, unsure how to even answer.
You glance at Osamu’s face flushing in embarrassment and decide to answer. “Yep, just recently! First time grocery shopping together though, we were just looking at the snacks we liked when we were young. Lot’s of similarities actually!”
“That’s so sweet!” Cashier Granny comments, scanning the last item. “Looks like there’s a feast going on! You two picked a good day to come. Okay. Now, factoring the discount, whew, it’s this much.” She taps the screen to show the total.
Both of you reach for the wallet at the same time. The Cashier Granny watches both of you with mirth in her wise, old eyes. She says something unexpected. “I can split it across two cards based on the basket,” she offers.
But wait, does this mean that she knows? She hums an old tune while punching some numbers in and charges each card separately. You look at the screen and see that the discount is still there. And there aren’t any questions either, so maybe you’re just overthinking it?
The cashier granny gives Osamu a fancy envelope. “This is a coupon to the restaurant that we’re partnering with. And lucky for the two of you! It’s the 100th one. Last coupon we have!”
“Thanks,” he says awkwardly, receiving the paper. Earlier, he was sure the two of you made it obvious that not only were you two not a couple, the two of you barely even knew each other. The whole show was a mess and beyond fake.
“That restaurant is really good!” Granny mentions, “really nice ambiance, the perfect place to get to know each other better.” She finishes off with a wink.
Flabbergasted, you’re about to make a retort when Osamu gathers up all the groceries and pulls you off to the side. The Granny only laughs and waves her hand to the next customer in line.
Outside EMI’s, you feel your blood pressure just rising higher and higher. That granny knew. Of course, she knew, Osamu thinks to himself. It’s just so obvious.
There is one question on your mind that you now suddenly remember. Squinting at Osamu, you break the silence and ask, “Oh yea, how did you know my name?”
Osamu gestures to your hip with his chin jutting out just slightly. “You didn’t take your badge off…like me.”
You follow his direction and glance down. Sure enough, your badge is still clipped there. Fair, he’s just observant, sometimes.
“Cool.”
Silence.
You take a deep breath, “So, I’ll be going now, uhh Miya. Nice meeting you…”
“Wait!” Osamu calls you before you can leave. He struggles to balance all the bags of groceries that he has but manages to pull out the envelope coupon. “Um, this is for two people. Do you…Would you want to go? I recognize the name and it’s pretty good I’ve heard.”
Silence, as you try to process the situation. Osamu’s phone rings again and he quickly sets his grocery down for a moment, scribbling something on the coupon and shoving the slightly crumpled envelope into your hand. He answers the phone but doesn’t respond yet, still looking at you and attempting to convey his thoughts. “Hope you hear from you Y/N! Nice meeting ya,” he glances at the phone briefly and turns his attention back to you momentarily, “and feel free to call me Osamu! Sorry, I really have to go.” Osamu takes a few more steps back, waving at you and telling his phone that “you’re calling at a horrible time.” He takes some more strides away and every now and then turns to see if you’re still watching his leaving form. Two more awkward waves later, he’s gone from your sight.
You finally start to walk in the other direction to where you came from. You pass the first block away from EMI’s and arrive at a pedestrian crossing. While waiting for the lights to change, you decide to examine the envelope Osamu shoves into your hand. It’s a messy but still legible scrawl.
Hi Y/N! If ya wanna go with someone else, here ya go. But maybe we can go together, this is my number.
You chuckle to yourself, should you?
“Should I?” you ask yourself aloud.
The pedestrian light turns green.
Yes.