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A year and a half had passed since the deal that sealed their fate as partners in crime was made. Things have gone well so far. Assaulting people had become much easier with Neko's help. She learned quickly, her skills improving by the day and it was almost like she had the natural talent for crimes. Neko went on to study criminology at M university which meant their schedules became busier and harder to schedule but it didn't stop them from their usual crimes. Recently, however, something had been bothering Osoto which had to do with the girl's recent behaviour.
"Who are you talking to?" Osoto said one day at their usual cafe.
Neko looked up from her phone to see Osoto staring at her. He had an annoyed look on his face which prompted her to stick out her tongue in response.
“So childish.”
"Speak for yourself. Anyway, it's none of your business," she responded, looking back down at her phone.
This caused Osoto's frown to deepen. "It's that guy from your university, isn't it?"
Neko momentarily stopped her texting and nodded. "Yeah, it's him. Why did you want to know?"
"I was just curious as to why you've been so distracted with your phone lately."
"Well, you know now."
Neko once again went back to her phone and Osoto's irritation only grew.
"Tsukahara." he said in a louder voice. "Are you not here because I'm always helping with your schoolwork?"
"Actually, I don't need any help on this assignment. I understand most of the stuff. I came here because we always do so after committing a crime together. You can study your own stuff, you know."
Osoto was a little taken aback at her response. It was true he’d been made redundant in tutoring math since Neko didn’t need it anymore. They were also both taking separate fields and she could always ask one of her seniors who was in the same course for better advice. Well, whatever. Osoto brought out his medical books from his bag and started reading. After a minute though, he was distracted again by Neko's constant tapping on her phone.
“What are you so eager about that you can’t put down your phone?”
"We're planning on going to a Team Winter concert together this weekend," she replied. "He managed to snag two tickets and offered one to me. Even though I'm more of a Team Autumn fan, tickets are hard to come by so I accepted."
"I see."
Neko tilted her head. "Did you want to come too?"
"No, I'm not a fan of those kinds of events. I think experiencing one idol concert with you is enough for a lifetime." Osoto shuddered.
"Hmph, too bad. There aren't enough tickets for three but I thought I would ask you anyway."
"How polite," Osoto remarked sarcastically. "Aren't you going to do any studying on your own? It's not as tough as medical school but you should still keep up with your studies."
"I will," she hummed.
Neko went on to text on her phone for another ten minutes, laughing at something and smiling at something else. He itched with annoyance at the sound of it. When she finished, she brought out her criminology books and went silent for a while. Osoto looked up after some time and found Neko buried face flat on the book in front of her. He couldn't help letting out a small sigh from how she immediately fell asleep after only studying for such a short time. Suddenly, there was a flash from her phone that caught his attention. After making sure she was soundly asleep, he picked up the phone and looked at the notification message.
'Why don't we get something to eat after the concert?'
The message was from a person labelled 'Mori-senpai'. The tiniest seed of sick jealousy planted itself in his stomach. He didn’t like that feeling. He thought about taking some time to figure out what Neko's password could be but decided against it as she could wake up at any time and it would be troublesome if she caught him with her phone. In the end, he dismissed the notification and hinged on the hope that she wouldn't realise that this Mori person had responded until after she went home and checked her messages. He returned the phone to its previous position and went back to reading his books.
Neko woke up shortly after and let out a big yawn. Osoto chided her for it and they both went back to their separate study. He was secretly happy when he saw Neko hadn't checked her phone during the entire time.
"What are you smiling for?" Neko asked when they finished.
"Nothing. Let's go now, I'll walk you to the station. "
Neko didn't press any further and the walk there was accompanied with their usual bickering. She harped on the fact that he should be less picky with his targets, a topic they had covered before but Osoto didn’t mind. As long as she still had her eyes on him, he could tolerate it. How funny it was to think he enjoyed the attention the girl gave him. Giving up the chance to stalk Atori didn’t feel so bad anymore, as long as this relationship lasted, it would be acceptable, he thinks.
A sudden ringing came from his bag, interrupting their conversation. He took out his phone and saw that it was from one of his girlfriends. Annoyance was his first reaction, however, there's a curious inkling in him that replaces that initial sour feeling when he saw Neko looking at him. Dead, fishy eyes watched him intently, awaiting his next move. He picked up the call.
A loud voice blasted his ear from the other side of the phone. “Masaki-kun! You finally picked up!”
He recoiled a little. "Yes, hello darling. Did you need something?”
“You haven’t been calling me lately. I missed your voice~”
The sense of annoyance rose again as he listened and responded in appropriate, affectionate fashion. Osoto could care less. His girlfriend goes on for far too long. There’s a mention of a date he promised and a present for their anniversary. He looked to Neko to gauge her reaction. Neko looked back at him with the same unchanging expression. He begins to regret picking up the call at all. When the call finally came to a lull and said their goodbyes, he sighs.
“Wow, you’re really sappy,” Neko said.
There’s a grin on her face and it looks like she was about to laugh. He wanted to wipe that expression off her face.
“Don’t you dare.” He glared at Neko, but it only made her struggle to stifle her laughter further.
“I’m sorry but it’s too funny not to laugh at you saying lovey-dovey things,” Neko bursts, finally letting out an unrestrained slew of laughter.
“She’s the most bothersome one to please,” he said, clicking his tongue. “And would you stop that?”
“I can’t, it’s too funny,” she said in between breaths. “Hey, what did you say to her at the end? Snookums? Or was it baby girl?”
Osoto pursed his lips. “Let’s stop talking about this.” He started walking to get away but Neko kept up next to him.
"Oh my god, are you sulking? You really are childish."
"I am not.”
“You are!” She laughed harder.
At first, he scolded her, getting aggravated at her continuous laughter. They've stopped walking because she's holding on to her stomach and his pride was crumbling by the second. He lightly bopped her in the back of the head as a further warning, but Neko was undeterred. The face he must’ve been making sends Neko into another fit of laughter but there’s a lilt to her laughter as she tries speaking again to apologise. A small frown graced his features, but he wasn’t so angry anymore. There’s a bubbling feeling of warmth from his stomach and it rose up his throat. He sighed again, but there’s a little laugh that escapes from him because of the ridiculousness of the whole situation. They probably looked a little strange to a passer-by. It’s silly and it’s fun and It’s childish; he’s aware of all that. Probably, he was a little bit like a child after all.
The walk to the station took longer because of Neko’s laughing fit, but when they arrived, the train was running late. Osoto waited around with her. The remnants of rush hour left them to stand in uncomfortably close quarters. He wanted to reach out and touch her, to pull her close and away from the strangers surrounding them. But he doesn't, not until Neko’s hand reaches into her pochette, presumably for her phone. Unconsciously, Osoto’s hand moved on its own and he grabbed onto her wrist.
“What is it?” she asked, surprised at the sudden gesture.
Osoto blinked. “Nothing.”
He retracted his hand and looked away. There was a questioning look in Neko’s eye, but she abandoned any attempts to reach into her pocket. The train arrived and she waved goodbye. Osoto stood still for a while on the train platform deep in thought. There’s a pain in his chest when he thought of the train getting further away, more so than the longing he felt for Atori.
The following week after, there’s concern mixed in with that painful feeling. Neko wasn't sloppy with any assaults but she was certainly spacing out more often.
"Don't mess this up," he warned.
"You know I never do," she said with a wave and left.
Osoto watched closely as Neko started chatting up the victim and lured her to a more remote location. Neko kept focus on the task at hand this time so he couldn’t nitpick her behaviour here but when it was just them, she was preoccupied with some other thing and Osoto had to exert extra energy to get her attention on him. She’d be gazing into some far off distance and suddenly she’d start smiling. He hated it. Although Neko was here now and looking at him through the phone’s camera, a witness and an accomplice to his vile deeds, the irritating thought that she would get distant again remained. That little seed popped up again as he was thinking about it and he's so preoccupied with it that he finds the body under him has already stopped struggling. Whether Neko noticed this behaviour or not, she didn't comment. When they finished cleaning up, Neko gestured to him and said that she’d have to leave early.
“What?” he said.
“It’s not a problem right? We’re already done for today and I have to meet up with someone.”
Osoto bit back the urge to say ‘that boy again?’ and coolly nodded instead.
“Thanks, I promise I’ll join you next time,” Neko said, clasping her hands together in an apology.
Somehow the feeling of satisfaction disappeared when she left.
Maybe it was because their relationship felt more fractious than usual that he dropped by Neko’s university unprompted later that week. He had already memorised her schedule and navigating the campus didn’t take long either so he arrived just in time as Neko’s class finished. Three other people emerged with her, two women and a man. The women didn’t interest him but he noticed the man was discussing something very excitedly with them. He was hovering particularly close to Neko, glancing at her more than he did to the other two. Osoto didn’t like it. There was the little seed again. The seed where he had put all the annoying feelings in his heart and he couldn't stomp them out.
The two women parted ways shortly after, leaving just Neko and the man by themselves. Neko said something to the man but Osoto was too far away to catch anything. Osoto inched closer and whatever the man said in response to Neko made her blush. Osoto quietly watched the rest of the conversation play out, unconsciously clenching his teeth. The man finally left after some minutes and Osoto followed Neko from behind.
“Tsukahara.” Osoto called out.
Neko’s eyes widened and she stopped walking. "Why are you here?"
"To pick you up. We're doing one today," he said, stepping closer.
"We are? You could've texted me."
"It was more convenient this way since I was in the area. Now, let's go."
Osoto walked slightly ahead of her. Neither of them planned to do any criminal activities today. What Osoto said was out of an impulse and in truth, he was improvising on the spot. An unusual force compelled him to keep walking, putting distance to whatever had suddenly brought on this behavior. The little seed of sickly feelings in his stomach kept reminding him that it was there. Neko thought he wasn't going to say anything while they walked but he finally spoke after a few awkward minutes of silence.
“Is he the guy you’ve been talking to?”
Neko eyed him suspiciously. “Yeah, what about it?”
“Is it Mori-senpai?”
“Huh? How do you know his name? I’ve never told you.”
“Do you like him?” Osoto asked, ignoring her question.
Neko contemplated her response. “What if I do?”
Osoto went silent for a moment. Neko waited, looking at his back as they walked and gazing at the jacket he always wore.
When Osoto answered, he said very bluntly, "He's not very impressive.”
“Huh, you’re critical as always.”
“I would’ve thought you’d be pickier than that.”
“I do prefer pretty boys but Mori-senpai has been very nice to me and he helps me with any hard assignments.”
“Is that so?” Osoto said. The little seed sprouted, carrying its ugly feelings to the surface. “You can still rely on me too. I know other things besides medicine.”
“I know, you always brag about it.” Neko’s eyes suddenly lit up. “Oh! I just remembered I haven’t told you about the concert he invited me to last weekend. It turned out to be really fun. Ahh, I haven’t shown you the pictures yet, have I? Mori-senpai’s really good at taking them.”
“No thank you.” The little sprout turned into an ugly flower. “Although you don't have much, you should have higher standards when it comes to choosing boyfriends.”
Neko’s mood deflated. “You don’t have to go that far.”
The little flower grew bigger, its roots tangling his words into a disfigured mess.”That guy doesn’t dress very well and he’s the type who doesn’t have pure intentions. He shouldn't be trying to try to pick up juniors who don’t know any better.”
Neko stopped in her tracks. Osoto stopped too and looked back at her. Her face twitched.
"Hey, what are you saying about Mori-senpai?”
“What? I’m telling the truth.” he said, visibly frowning.
Neko wondered when he had gotten this presumptuous. She stared Osoto down with balled up fists.
“Telling the truth? What’s wrong with you? I don't care about his looks. He's a nice person and we have the same interests. Is it wrong to like someone who respects me? ”
Osoto flinched but Neko kept going.“Is status all you care about? Why the hell did you even come here? Besides, it’s ironic hearing this from you when you said my sense of fashion is pretty weird too.”
There’s a tension between them that hadn’t sparked up before. It felt like it could shatter at any moment and the shards that broke off would puncture whatever familiarity they had built up over the past year and a half and he would be alone again. But it’s too late because the next words are already out of his mouth.
“Status is important in the adult world, you should know this. Your style has at least become strangely charming in my eyes but that guy doesn’t have anything worth complimenting at all and like I said, I just came to pick you up but I don’t think you should be spending so much time with him anymore.”
“Seriously, why are you being so harsh on Mori-senpai?”
“I’m simply giving my opinion that he’s not right for you."
“I don’t think you have any say in this.”
“Look—”
Just then, Neko's phone rang, temporarily cutting the fuse that was about to blow up. Neko didn’t look at the caller id when she fished out her phone. She answered it while ignoring the glare that was coming from Osoto.
"Hm? Oh, Mori-senpai. Sorry, I was– hey!"
Osoto snatched her phone away and ended the call.
"Don't interrupt me," he growled.
She was about to snap at him again until Osoto handed back her phone just as quickly as he had snatched it and turned away from her and began walking. It was clear he didn’t want to speak about the topic any longer. They continued to walk like before and Neko all the while watched him cautiously. She suspected something was really bothering him. He had never butted in her personal life like this before, not to the extent of doing anything physically. He almost acted as if he was jealous but that couldn't be the case because there was no reason he'd be jealous over such a simple thing. No, he didn’t see her like that. This was a friendship built on sin. Since he was walking in front, she couldn’t see his expression, though he didn’t seem apologetic. In fact he didn’t say anything about it at all for the rest of the day. In any case, Neko didn’t intend to apologise either.
That day, a cavern opened up between them.
Days passed and things did not get any better. The incident had worsened their relationship and Neko stopped sending her usual cheeky messages. What he got instead were curt, businesslike exchanges asking only when and where they were meeting to carry out their assaults. They even stopped going to cafes afterwards. It didn’t help the feeling of unease that crept up on him, subtly digging into the crevices of his mind. Neko’s absence was something he had suddenly become conscious of. Their already frail relationship was on the brink of snapping apart completely. Not much of a conversation happened when they met in person.
They worked in silence. The quietness between them sliced harder than anything Osoto could inflict. It felt like he was the one being stabbed. He hated it.
Neko spoke up suddenly. “Osoto-san.”
“Yes?” he answered, a hope bubbling in his chest.
“Can you pass me my bag?”
“Oh.” He was expecting something else. “Yes, of course.”
Osoto promptly reaches for the bag and holds it out for her.
“Thanks, I’ll be leaving now.”
She takes it from his hands and Osoto notices a small slip of paper escape but there's something clogging up his trachea that prevents him from saying anything further. He doesn’t say ‘you’re welcome' or ‘bye’ or least of all ‘wait’ instead he stays silent. Neko leaves like before and Osoto stands in the room alone. He picks up the paper and it’s a ticket to a concert from two weeks ago.
Why was he feeling so annoyed?
Little tendrils of fire attempted to suffocate him and it felt like acid was running down his throat. There’s a taste of bitterness as he recalls the last few days. The image of Neko’s face leaves him in both disgust and fascination. He hadn’t felt something like this since seeing Atori but even this was different from him. Osoto never had Atori. Osoto had Neko. Neko had willingly come into his life and she could willingly leave too. The little paper ticket in his hand crumples under his frustrations. He rips it up into little pieces. It feels good. It tore apart easily in his hands. Osoto could just as easily kill Neko if he wanted to. He briefly considers it.
Even if he did kill her, the problem would still persist or worse, it could exacerbate the feeling. He abandons the idea.
He could try killing the annoying senior but Neko would break off the deal when she found out since friends and family were off limits. He didn’t understand. There was nothing special about Mori at all. Osoto had everything over him; looks, intelligence, wealth. The only advantage Mori had was physical proximity with Neko. Mori saw her more often, talked and texted her more often too probably. Hurt. He felt hurt. It was unfair, which was why Osoto decided to pay a visit to her university again the next day.
Osoto arrived on time again as Neko emerged from her last class of the day. This time she was walking alone.
Osoto approached her. “Tsukahara.”
Neko glanced up at him. “What?”
Osoto tried to ignore the little thorns piercing his heart as she looked at him. “A hello would be nice.”
“Did we have something on today?”
“No, I just wanted to visit.” It keeps eating away at him. “Do you have time?”
“Sure, I don’t have anything on after this,” she said. “But I already said that you need to text me whenever you come like this.”
“Don’t you like surprises?”
“Not from you,” Neko retorted.
He wants to clear this atmosphere quickly. He wants to kill the annoying feeling soon.
“Is there anywhere you want to go?” Osoto asked. “A shop, restaurant, anything.”
He forced out his words despite his pride. This was the plan he came up with. Broke university students all had the same problems and Neko was no exception.
As he predicted, Neko’s expression brightens at his words. “Are you paying?”
“That depends.”
Neko thought it over and Osoto leaned forward expectantly.
A voice interrupted. ”Tsukahara-chan!”
Osoto turned towards the voice and found the source of his problems had shown up at the most inconvenient time.
“Mori-senpai!” Neko turned too and greeted him cheerfully. “Did you need something?”
“It’s nothing important but I thought I would ask anyway.” Mori glanced at Osoto. “Sorry, am I interrupting something?”
“Yes,” Osoto responded curtly. “You’ve disturbed us at a very bad time.”
Osoto is taller than him by quite a bit. He glared down at the man which made Mori laugh nervously. Neko goes in between the two.
“Don’t worry about him, just say what you need to say.”
“Well…” Mori glanced at Osoto then back at Neko. “There’s this pop-up store selling merchandise and I wanted to ask if you’d like to go there with me today.”
Osoto twitched at that and Neko takes her time to answer. There’s something that drives Osoto mad, something that made his blood boil. Neko opened her mouth but he cut in before she could say anything.
“I’m afraid Tsukahara has already made plans with me today.”
“Oh,” Mori said quietly.
“That and…” Osoto stepped closer to him.
Mori instinctively stepped back. How amusing. He whispered something in his ear and Mori’s face drained of colour. When Osoto pulled back, he had a polite smile on his face. He could sense Neko glared daggers at him but he patted Mori on the shoulder as if to assure the other. Mori doesn’t look assured.
“We’ll be leaving now,” Osoto said.
The other man stuttered in his place and Osoto’s hand was on Neko’s lower back as he led them away. They walked far away enough from the campus that there were no other students in sight and Neko wrenched herself away from his touch.
”Hey, what the fuck!” Neko yelled, rounding on him. “Why did you scare him away like that? I don’t have a problem with who you choose to target but don't you dare hurt my friends.”
What small satisfaction Osoto gained from messing with the other man disappeared. Everything sounded too loud; his heartbeat, Neko’s voice, the chirping bird above the electric poles. It was too noisy.
“Shut up.” He moved to walk ahead.
"No, I won't." She stepped in front of him."If you won't stop probing in my relationships, I won’t hesitate sending you to hell.”
"You got in the way of Haruto-san and me. I don’t see why I can’t also do that to you?”
“You were going to hurt Atori-senpai otherwise! There’s a difference between us!”
Neko's voice was irritating and something inside of him finally snapped. The wall he built up finally cracks and he can't look at anything else except for the girl in front of him. Osoto pulls Neko towards him and he kisses her. It’s fervent and rough and he doesn't give her a chance to think. There's a desperateness to his kiss. Soft lips pressed against hers so urgently, it was as if she would disappear from his touch at any moment. Osoto's body was backing her up against the alley wall and one of his hands lent itself against her cheek.
Then his tongue forces itself in. It's overwhelming and Neko can’t move, either from her own shock or from how gratifying it was. Her hands tug at his jacket like a lifeline as Osoto continues to kiss deeper. All of his pent-up emotions were released at once. It didn't matter that they were in some alleyway near the city accompanied by empty boxes and poor graffiti under the shadows of the buildings. No, this suited them much better. A hint of bitter coffee laces his saliva. It’s addicting how the warmth surges in. She realises just how much taller and larger than her that his presence envelops her completely and there's a muffled whimper coming from Neko as the shortage of oxygen starts getting unbearable.
Osoto pulls back for just a moment and Neko is left breathless. There’s an intensity in his gaze that makes her squirm.
"Osoto, what–"
Neko doesn't get to finish her sentence because Osoto's lips are back on hers again and he presses himself against her more tightly. There’s more precision this time, he knows exactly where to press with his tongue to get a reaction from her. Osoto is experienced, she acknowledges that. A little too experienced because she isn't sure what to do and her brain can't think straight. He lingers for far too long and his arms are tangled around her. She's ensnared by the sensation of everything she almost loses herself completely in his hold. Only when his hands started fumbling with the hem of her hoodie did Neko snap out of her delirious state. This was going too far.
Out of panic, she bit down on his inner lip and kicked his shin in haste. Osoto could taste the coppery tang of blood and drew back.
"Shit!"
Neko hurriedly drew out the little box from her pochette and held it tightly. Her pulse was pounding loudly and whether it was from the kiss or from her own agitation, she couldn’t tell. What was important though was that she could not let her guard down.
"Stay back," she warned.
She held the box tightly. Despite what she said, there’s hesitation in her movements. She can’t use the key. Not when his cheeks are flushed and he’s curled up, holding onto his legs. He didn’t look like the man she knew from the hotel who had stood over her with a gun pointed and an expression full of contempt. He looked vulnerable. He looked hurt.
When did their relationship change?
When did he start looking at her with an expression of warmth?
And when did she start liking him too in that way?
"I won't do anything," Osoto said, standing and raising both of his hands.
"How can I trust you?"
"You have to.”
He stared at Neko. There's a little bit of blood that drips down from his mouth and runs down to his chin. She knows there’s no other choice otherwise everything ends then and there. Their partnership would end and only one of them would come out of this place alive. There’s a tense silence between them, a thin, invisible line that landed on her to either snap it or leave it.
Neko puts the box away.
"Fine, but you better keep your word," she said.
Osoto nodded and he wiped the blood off his chin. Neko straightened her own clothes and she spoke with a tone of caution in her voice.
"Is your mouth okay?"
"It’s nothing serious,” he said, grimacing. “Your kick hurts a lot more.”
“Sorry.”
“Let’s just go home."
They’re walking together again just like always except this time Osoto is stepping tentatively with one of his legs and there’s an awkward silence between them. Broaching the topic of what happened earlier seemed impossible but walking in silence was even more unbearable so they both spoke at the same time.
“You know—” Osoto began. “I think—” said Neko.
They both stopped.
Osoto started again. “You know, I may have overstepped a little,” he admitted.
"I think you definitely overstepped," she said, glaring at him.
Osoto squirmed. She has the feeling that he didn't say it out of guilt for Mori but rather he didn’t want to worsen their relationship.
“Please don’t interfere in my other friendships anymore.”
“...Yes, I’ll stop.”
Osoto tugged at his collar. Seeing him far from being his usual composed self was amusing. Endearing, almost. Whatever it was, their relationship had changed. Now, perhaps, she kept hesitating, but Neko tried not to worry about it. After all, they would meet in hell again.
She glanced up at him. "You owe me an expensive dinner."
"Why me? I got hit."
Neko made an exasperated face. "It was sexual assault... " Osoto was actually quite whiny, she thinks.
“I know, I was just joking,” he said. “I’ll treat you to dinner.”
“That was a terrible joke, please do better next time.”
“You’re harsh.”
They're out of the alleyway now and onto a street with small shops. Neko spotted something and told Osoto to stay there. She ran off before he could protest and she came back a minute later with something in her hand.
"Here." She handed him an ice pack and he looked at her in surprise.
"You're a strange girl, Tsukahara-san."
"I know, and you're welcome."
She grinned as he found a bench to sit down, applying it onto his bruised shin. Neko sat down next to him, drumming her fingers together.
"Huhu, so about dinner…"
"Request something reasonable."
"I am! If you're asking me, you've been the one who's been way too unreasonable lately." Neko's eyes suddenly widened as it hit her. "Wait, were you jealous?"
"No," he shot down instantaneously.
"So you WERE jealous." Neko gasped and her mouth curved upwards into a cheeky grin.
"I said I wasn't jealous."
"Huhuhuhu."
"I'm telling you, Tsukahara, I wasn't jealous," Osoto huffed.
Neko wasn't listening at all and had her hand up to her mouth. "The elite medical student was jealous over a common boy!"
"Don't word it weirdly like that."
"Should I do something to commemorate this…?"
"If you won't stop talking, I'll kiss you again."
"Do it gently please this time."
He had it in mind to smack her with the ice pack.
“By the way, what did you say to Mori-senpai?”
Osoto smiled. “That’s only something between men.”
“You just threatened him, didn’t you?”
He paused for a moment before replying. “Maybe.”
Neko didn’t look surprised. “He’ll probably be avoiding me for a few days then,” she sighed.
“Good.”
Neko stared fixedly at him. Then she kicked his other shin.