Chapter Text
At a cafe in the midst of Shibuya -
“One coffee and a pancake with rum syrup, please!”
“Oh, um, one mocha frappuccino, with two caramel pumps, and a sprinkle of chocolate chips, please! Oh, yes, that will be all. Thank you!”
The two girls smiled at one another at the waiter’s disappearance, sharing expressions of ‘we did it!’ to one another.
An exhaled a sigh, leaning back in the trendy wood chair. The table her and Kohane were seated at was similarly fancy, the wood finish polished to a shine. The entire interior held a glow of style, which made the half-hour long wait to enter feel like a miniscule affront.
Kohane’s hair, held loose for once, was curled at the tips. Her clothing, although simple, befit her cute yet feminine aura. She fiddled with the buttons on her handbag as she spoke. “Hehehe, I hope the waiter was able to get that all-”
“He may add an extra pump, who knows!” An smiled, stretching out her arm to pat Kohane’s head. It joyed her to see her friend hadn’t changed much in university, at least not in terms of beverage choice. Rather, Kohane seemed more confident than ever, which painted her face in a glow that makeup had no hand in.
Time had passed: Vivid Bad Squad were still together, that was true, yet with the advent of college and university, making time for practice was significantly tighter. Which makes these little moments all the more precious! With a shake of her head, which sent her ponytail flying, An dismissed the brief negativity, focusing rather on a question. “So. How’s classes?”
“Oh, good! Not as nerve-racking as I thought!” Kohane beamed, flashing an ivory smile. “It sure is nice to have Shiho-chan there. And the same goes for Kiritani-san.”
“Heheheh, tell her I said hi!...waitttt, it seems like you’re forgetting someone.” A conspiracy hint crept into An's tone.
Kohane shielded her blushing face from An’s prying gaze with her petite hands. “Ok, and also Toy- Aoyagi-kun-”
The conversation continued, quickly moving from the topic of Toya and Kohane from the latter’s request. Count Pearl’s health was discussed, new music techniques were shared, and above all else, stories were exchanged. Yet the two both knew the real question was being saved…
When the drinks arrived, so did the time to ask. The two took sips of their concoctions. Swallowed. With trepidation, yet immense curiosity, Kohane pushed the first piece on the metaphorical chess board.
“So, how’s it like to live with him, An-chan?”
A sputtering noise came from the usually confident An.
She wiped the spilt latte from her lips. “You’ve grown so much, Kohane…” Tears glistened in her eyes. “Before, you’d never have the confidence to be so direct...”
“An-chan…” Kohane’s eyes glistened. Then narrowed, a weary smile on her face as she giggled. “...are you dodging the question?” The formerly shy singer hazarded around a sip of “coffee”.
To this, An had no rebuttal. Once again, she leaned in her chair, this time, from embarrassment rather than anticipation. “Well…it’s more or less…good. Good.” Yet the corners of her mouth lifted, betraying the joy within her.
“Akito’s a real piece of work...”
The waiter slid the pancake onto the table in sync with An’s murmured complaint. The pancake…was large.
Wow. Worth the price-tag, I guess? “Kohaneeeeeeeee-” The girl with cobalt hair could only conjure a sob, which was sufficient effort towards getting Kohane to half it with her. The two munched on the fluffy delicacy, until the hamster girl paused in her nibbling.
“Um...has he been mean?”
Vividly, An shook her head. “Nononono, he’d never get away with it. But every day, he manages to do something to surprise me!”
Pancake forgotten, the floodgate of words opened, as An relayed the events of the past few months to her ever-curious forever partner.
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At a arcade on the edge of Shibuya~
“...Toya.”
“Mm? Yes, Akito?”
Akito watched as the crane’s metallic hands shakily dropped the hamster plushie into the victory hole.
“This is the eight plushie you’ve earnt. And just who is taking them all?”
It was the first time in weeks that the two were able to meet, and their meeting spot, although somewhat childish for two college students, was the most comfortable out of all their options. At least, for Toya it was. Akito merely gazed back at his partner’s somewhat concerning propensity to win prizes. Prizes which he himself had no use for.
Finally, Toya leaned away, seemingly satisfied with his plunder. The fabric hamster nestled firmly in his arms, seeming more pillow than plushie. He must have been oblivious to the stares from the nearby gamers, as he merely blinked.
“Oh, I assumed Koh- Azusawa-san would like this one. The others,” he paused to stare at the plastic bag in Akito’s hand and the numerous, plush faces that stared back.
“I’ll…give to my brothers?”
To this, Akito laughed. It’s better than his idea of giving it to his dad, at least. “Like hell they’d want these. Tell you what, I’ll pawn them off to some girls in my class.” They were partial to the salesman smile he often gave them when offering the prizes Toya frequently acquired. At a higher price than he won them, too, although that was certainly not an important detail.
Toya’s features softened, contrasting the arrow which were his following words. “Why not give them to Shiraishi instead?”
The plushies fell out of Akito’s hand. Once again, those huddled over the numerous arcade games paused to stare at the duo.
“Dude. Help me pick these up already-” Was all he could mumble angrily. The plushies back in the ghost of a bag, the two swiftly left the arcade. To where, neither of them knew. All they could sense was the awkwardness that now lingered in the air.
Akito plucked the plushie from Toya’s arms. “People are staring at you.” A horde of university-aged woman were glancing at the former pianist's way. Akito glared at them. Sighed.
“...An is a special case.”
“Hmm?” Toya had no better response. “In…a bad way?”
“No, no. It’s just-” the ginger found it difficult to articulate anything about her. “My feelings are a mess about her.”
Even now, surrounded by a bevy of girls, dressed by the trends, his mind was far-away. To a girl, who couldn’t care less about whether she was stylish or not, yet still managed to have such a firm grip on his heart.
“Akito…you look happy.” The smile on Toya’s face translated to his tone. “Happier than usual. Doesn’t that mean your feelings towards her are positive?”
The calm, collected words from Toya gave Akito a jolt. “Dude - look at you, lecturing me about feelings!” He couldn’t help himself as he ruffled the two-toned hair of his partner, as he fumbled to find where to begin.
“Well, she’s not as annoying as I thought, to start.” The words physically pained him to say. “I might even say, she’s cute. On a good day.”
“Oh?”
Akito just knew Toya’s face was glazed with an expression of rapture. Deliberately, he trudged in the opposite direction. “C’mon. That fancy cafe’s line is finally bearable. I’ll tell you there.”
The two walked forth to the dazzling cafe, sharing grins like the sun.