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Where is he!? Tori scanned the area as he impatiently tapped his foot against the sidewalk. The sun was already beginning to set, bathing the school in a bright tangerine glow. Fewer students were trickling out, some of them eyeing Tori warily. He had been looking forward to this day for over a year, and he would not accept lateness under any circumstances. Tori messaged Hajime through Hold-Hands, allowing the blue rabbit thirty seconds to reply.
The sequel to the horror movie Hajime made an appearance in was released just a week ago, and Tori had jumped on the chance to show his support. A year ago, Hajime had told him that he wouldn’t be ready to come over to his house until they got to know each other more. So, the day before, as the Himemiyas were obviously already given a copy of the movie, Tori invited Hajime over to his house to watch it together. To his delight, Hajime accepted, and Tori scrambled to ready his residence for their movie night.
Hajime should have finished Ra*bits practice a while ago, and it was normal for him to be early to his commitments. Even though it wasn’t time for them to meet up yet, Tori was letting his eagerness get ahead of him. He decided to go and look for Hajime, reasoning that if Hajime made it to their meeting spot after Tori left, he would probably check his messages.
“Hajime?” Tori called. He walked through the garden space, towards where the gazebo stood. Tori was confident enough in his and Hajime’s friendship to think he knew where Hajime would be in his free time. What he didn’t expect was an orange-haired obstacle.
“Why do you have to go so soon, Shinonon~?”
A giggle followed. “I made a promise to go over to Tori-kun’s house today, but I promise that we can hang out again later~”
“At least let me walk you there so we can hold hands the entire way ♪”
“O-Oh, would that be—”
Tori decided it was time for him to step in. “Hajime, I finally found you~♪”
Both students sitting in the gazebo turned toward him, one flustered, and the other confused.
“Himemin?” Akehoshi tilted his head in question. “Aww, I thought I had more time with Shinonon.” The disappointed look on his face was more satisfying than it should have been.
Hajime was flushed, giving Tori a deer-in-the-headlights look. “T-Tori-kun…!” His eyes darted between Tori and Akehoshi before settling on Tori again. “S-Sorry, I guess I lost track of time…”
Tori dismissively waved away his concern. “It’s okay, Hajime. I just happened to be early, and I wanted to see what my friend would be doing at this time.” He pointedly looked at Akehoshi, who only returned a confused smile.
“Himemin is already here, so I’ll let you guys do whatever you have planned. I still have to see Gami-san about the dog playdate he had planned with Junjun~☆” Akehoshi gingerly grasped Hajime’s hand and gently kissed the back of it.
“Uwawaha!?” Though it seemed impossible, Hajime’s face flushed even harder, and Tori could swear he saw steam coming out of his ears.
With a final wink at a disoriented Hajime, Akehoshi skipped off, humming to himself as if he hadn’t just completely broken his “friend.”
Tori walked up to Hajime and took his hands. “Are you still with me?”
“…”
“Umm…” Tori looked around to see if there was anyone else in the garden he could go to for help.
“I think he’s broken.”
“…!?” Tori looked around for the source of the voice before feeling a cold breath on the back of his neck.
“You shouldn’t leave your neck exposed so easily, y’know. What if a vampire comes along~?”
“STAY AWAY FROM ME!” Tori shrieked, letting go of Hajime’s hands to put them up to his neck, and turning around to see Ritsu looking at him in amusement. “Wha— Ritsu-senpai!? How long were you there!?”
“You’re too easy, Pinky.” Ritsu chuckled darkly and let out a wide yawn, slumping onto the gazebo bench.
Tori huffed indignantly. “Y-You didn’t scare me at all. I don’t know what you’re talking about.” He gesticulated toward Hajime. “How about instead of making lackadaisical attempts to scare me, you help out over here?”
“Hmm…” Ritsu eyed Hajime, blinking slowly. “’Kay.” He stood behind Hajime, and without warning, put his hands up Hajime’s shirt.
“Ah!” Hajime gasped as he broke out of his stupor. “Ritsu-onii-chan…!?”
“W-Wha—!?” Tori pointed accusatorily at Ritsu. “I told you to help him, not sexually assault him!”
“…Didn’t it work though?” Ritsu rubbed his fingers against Hajime’s ribs. “Besides, Ha-kun doesn’t mind. Isn’t that right, Ha-kun?”
Hajime could only giggle and wheeze a response. “T-That tickles…!”
Seemingly satisfied, Ritsu relinquished his hold of Hajime, slim fingers lazily retracting from underneath the thin clothing. “Well, I think it’s time for me to head out,” he yawned. “Ecchan was talking with some of the members of Knights about our cover song Live, and I’ve actually got to pull my weight…” With that, he slinked away, leaving Tori and Hajime alone.
“I-I’m sorry, I usually make it to our meeting place earlier, but I lost track of time…” Hajime sheepishly twiddled his fingers.
Tori sighed, looking in the direction of where Akehoshi had run off. “I can see that…”
“Welcome to my humble abode!” Tori announced grandly.
Hajime gasped, looking around the lobby of the large mansion.
“Follow me so you don’t get lost ♪” Tori instructed. Seeing Hajime distractedly nod his head, he began leading the way to the mansion’s AV room. While he admitted that the AV room at Yumenosaki was decent, there was nothing like the comfort of one’s own home, especially with the Himemiyas’ servants at his beck and call. Tori turned his head to see Hajime still looking around in wonder as they walked through the halls, and he felt a small smile creep onto his face. That childish innocence… Hold onto it, Hajime…
“How do you find your way around here?” Hajime asked, still overwhelmed, judging by the way his eyes were dilated as he took in the grandiose designs of the hallway and the glimpses of open rooms.
“You get used to it,” Tori replied. “I know this mansion like the back of my hand — every room, every piece of furniture. Things rarely change around here unless there’s some kind of big renovation, so when I was little, I would play a game where I would try to make it around the mansion with my eyes closed.”
Hajime giggled. “Do you still do that now~?”
Tori stiffened slightly before relaxing into his signature charming smile. “No…” I’m not supposed to. “I guess I just grew out of it.” I HAD to grow out of it. “And besides,” A part of me forgot what it felt like to be a child. “It became too easy for me anyway ♪”
“Well, maybe you should show me after we finish watching the movie,” Hajime suggested with an eager smile.
Tori faced away from Hajime, careful to not let his expression give anything away. “Mm… maybe…”
The cutesy pair entered the AV room, which had a large screen at the front. There were several rows of comfy seats lined up, with the first row a couple yards away from the screen.
“Since it’s only the two of us, I asked to have that moved here.” Tori pointed toward the burgundy sofa pushed up against the front row of seats, perfectly sized for two people. With their petite frames, Tori and Hajime would even be able to fit Harukawa or Shiratori. On the right side of the sofa was a small stand flawlessly prepared with a remote control, snacks, and drinks.
Hajime walked up to the sofa and felt its soft cushioning. Giggling, he jokingly bowed to Tori. “After you, princess.”
Tori giggled as well, taking a seat on the side next to the stand. He took Hajime’s hand and guided him down next to him. “We can take a break if we ever need to, but these snacks and drinks should be enough ♪” Taking the remote, he started up the movie, glancing over at Hajime.
“I’ve never done anything like this before. I wonder what I look like when I’m acting…” Hajime laughed with nervous excitement.
As the movie started, Tori began to fidget. His fingers curled around the plush of the sofa, and he couldn’t get his legs into a comfortable position or stop his breath from increasing in pace. The movie started off worse than he expected.
The wind howled as the surrounding trees towered over a small boy in all directions. The foliage of the trees was so dense that the moonlight struggled to illuminate the boy’s surroundings, and the brambles reached out toward the boy, only visible when they were a few centimeters away from his face.
“Masahito! Kousei! Where are you!?” The small boy called. “How did this go so wrong…?”
Inhumane wailing sounded in the distance.
“W-What was that…?” He brushed his blond bangs out of his face with an arm caked in dirt. “I-I don’t want to be here. Mom, please…” Tears started to run down his face.
The wailing sounded again, significantly closer than before.
The boy’s eyes dilated in fear as he laid eyes on a figure in the shadows. “W-What are you!?” He started running through the woods, snagging himself on the branches of nearby trees. Nasty cuts lined his arms and face and the tears only seemed to flow faster as his breathing became increasingly ragged.
The wailing slowly grew distant until it faded out completely.
“I-Is… Is it gone…?” The boy gasped for breath, exhausted from having run so far. He collapsed against a tree, curling his legs up against his chest, his sobbing now unrestrained.
A faint clicking sound could be heard from above.
The boy looked up and his head was grabbed by two pale scaly hands. “AHHHHHHHH-!”
Crack.
“AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!” Hajime and Tori screamed simultaneously.
“Oh my goodness, why, why, WHY!?” Tori gripped the armrest as he caught his breath. “That was wholly unnecessary! Do they want to get a lawsuit!?”
“That was a pretty good jumpscare.” Hajime giggled. “What a way to start the movie ♪”
“Y-Yeah, that… wow, I…” Tori heaved himself off the armrest that he accidentally draped himself over. “Let’s just hope it doesn’t get worse than that…”
Ninety minutes and many screams later, and the credits of the film rolled.
Hajime took a small sip from his nearly empty soda. “That was a really good film. It’s nice to see people you work with doing their best, knowing how much fun they had filming it~ Isn’t that right, Tori-kun?”
Tori barely processed Hajime’s words, still reeling from the climax of the movie. He was sure that he stopped breathing at that scene, on the edge of his seat, wondering whether everyone that had worked so hard to survive, including Hajime, was just going to get killed off. I underestimated the commoners that have the fortitude to withstand such gratuitous scares and gore…
“T-Tori-kun, are you okay?”
“I… don’t think I have an answer to that right now,” Tori breathed out.
“A-Ah, you look so pale! Hold on, I’ll get you some water and a warm towel!”
“Why are you acting like you’re checking me for a fever…” Tori groaned in annoyance as Hajime didn’t pause in rushing out of the room, leaving him alone. Tori sighed, laying down on the sofa and flipping his legs over the armrest. Wait, does Hajime even know his way around here? Well, it wasn’t like his house was that big, especially if he narrowed it down to the main building.
It was probably obvious how scared he was through the entire ordeal, screaming like he had during the first film. Tori thought being prepared would make it easier to handle, but he supposed he overestimated himself.
THUD.
Tori froze. “W-What?” There was no need to worry. It wasn’t like he was the only person in the house. King, his sister, Hajime, and the other staff were also somewhere in the house. Not to mention that because of their security, no one could have just gotten in. And yet… supernatural things had no problem bypassing those sorts of things. What if… something did get—
“Tori-kun?”
“AHHHH!” Tori yelped as he fell off the sofa.
“O-Oh no! Are you okay!?” Hajime immediately rushed to Tori’s side, looking at him in concern. “I couldn’t find a towel, but I have some water for you. Would you like some?”
“…I’m sorry, Hajime.”
“E-Eh!? For what?”
“It was obvious how much of a scaredy-cat I was during the movie, wasn’t it?” Tori asked, refusing to look Hajime in the eyes.
“U-Um, well, I wouldn’t say it like that, but…” Hajime paused, looking at Tori as if he was scared Tori would suddenly lash out at him for saying something that could be considered insulting. “I guess…”
“I thought so,” Tori sighed. “I was such an idiot…”
Hajime helped Tori to sit upright, handing him the cup of water. “I’m not sure what you’re talking about… But you should drink something, and I’m sure you’ll start to feel better ♪”
“Thanks…” Tori slowly drank from the cup, surprised to realize that his throat was parched, probably from all the screaming he was doing. “I hadn’t realized I needed that so much. I suppose that’s what happens when one is unaccustomed to these types of things.”
Hajime took the cup back from Tori with a gentle smile. “Do you feel better now? I can get a refill if you want.”
“No, it’s quite alright.” Tori attempted to sit in a more composed manner. “You should get some water too. I heard you scream quite a lot as well.”
“I-It’s alright,” Hajime brushed off. “I’m more concerned about you right now… Can you explain what you were saying before?”
“Oh. That.” Tori hoped Hajime would just let him go without having to confront the issue, but he knew better than to ignore his concern. “I-I just wanted to look cool in front of you. You always look up to me, and I just wanted to show you that I wouldn’t be scared watching something like this…”
Hajime looked at Tori doubtfully, a frown painting the canvas that was his face with shades of worry.
Tori wasn’t sure if Hajime could tell that he was telling a half-truth, or if he was just disappointed in Tori’s answer, but before he could stop himself, he said, “I also wanted support you.”
Hajime’s face scrunched in confusion. “Support… me?”
Tori mentally smacked himself for slipping so easily, and he nodded before deciding to continue what he started. “You always watch as many of the variety shows and movies that I perform in as possible.” And you’ve been growing so much… so much that I’ve been afraid of falling behind. “You look up to me because you think I’m a great leader…” But the truth is that I’ve been so jealous of you. Tori breathed sharply and closed his eyes, clenching his fists. “I wanted to prove to myself that I could still support you in the same way you supported me, because you were my first real friend,” and I wanted to know my feelings wouldn’t get in the way of supporting you. I wanted to prove it by going through something torturous all for you! When Tori opened his eyes again, Hajime was staring back at him in shock.
“Tori-kun…” Hajime looked down at his lap. “I… I should get us something to drink.”
“Hm?” Was Hajime just trying to get out of the room? Tori wouldn’t blame him.
Hajime smiled reassuringly. “Do you have those rare tea leaves you brought around from last time?”
“O-Oh! To keep the staff from accidentally using them, I keep them in my room. I’ll show you.”
“Lead the way ♪”
“You should start drinking, Tori-kun ♪” Hajime nudged softly, his voice soft and reassuring. Tori couldn’t possibly understand how more people didn’t take notice of it during Live performances when Hajime could stand out against even fine.
“A-Alright…” Tori shakily lifted his teacup, taking a sip of the aromatic tea. His shoulders sagged in relaxation as a familiar burning warmth flooded his senses, followed by a delectable aftertaste. To this day, it was still unlike anything he had ever tasted before. Maybe just a little more… He took an even larger sip.
Hajime’s soft smile grew a little wider. “That feels better, right?”
Tori nodded, waiting for the inevitable questioning to resume. He could tell Hajime wanted to say something, and if it was obvious how terrified he was, Tori was sure it was also obvious that he had more to say. His eyes locked into Hajime's.
“Hm? Do you need anything else?”
Oh. “N-No, it’s nothing. Just… the tea is good…”
Hajime nodded. “We should bring Suou-kun a gift for always being able to supply us with this tea ♪”
Tori watched Hajime expectantly, only for the latter to take another sip of tea, sighing with pleasure at the taste. “…Are you going to ask?”
Hajime tilted his head. “Ask what?”
Tori blinked back at him in surprise. “Never mind.” Does he not know? How could he not? Does he want me to talk on my own? Or does he…
Hajime hummed Joyful×Box* as he continued to drink.
Or does he not expect me to talk at all? Tori watched Hajime over his cup, and he suddenly realized his cup had gone dry.
“Do you need a refill~? Don’t worry, we still have more ♪” Hajime took the teapot sitting next to their teacups and filled Tori’s cup back up until it was nearly full. “Just tell me if you want more. We can always resupply from Suou-kun.”
Tori silently nodded, staring at his reflection in the tea. A small smile gradually graced his face, gentle and reassuring. He could allow himself to pretend just for a little longer. He knew that Hajime was going to give him as much space as he needed, so he allowed himself to stop overthinking. Trusting Hajime with the truth was the least he could do, but Tori would save that for a later day. “Hm?”
King rubbed himself up against Tori’s leg, whimpering quietly as he awaited head pats. It was surprising to see that King had come over, as he usually opted to stay in one place more often as he got older. His request didn’t go unanswered.
For now, he could pretend that he was a kid again: before he had to worry about managing everything, about the expectations of becoming a star, about the realization that he was falling behind and falling apart. He was back to when he could sip hot chocolate by the fireplace, wrapped in cozy blankets with King snuggling against him. It burned with a warmth Tori hadn’t felt since then. But even as the tea started to become lukewarm, when he sipped it, it burned even hotter.