Archive of Our Own ^beta

(There, he'd admitted it, painful as the truth was.)

Not that Todomatsu didn’t know his way around clothes, of course. He had his own preferred style that he knew inside and out – an entire genre of fashion as familiar to him as a map with permanent creases and corners worn out from overuse. 

It was just...

As well as Todomatsu could navigate his own personal preferences and determine the best combination of his favourite items to achieve an aesthetically pleasing look, even he could not top his older brother when it came to knowing what kind of vibes certain clothes gave off. As such, Karamatsu was by far the best among them at selecting the best outfit for a given situation. Most of the time none of them really cared all that much how their sense of style came across to others, but every so often there was a need for Karamatsu and his vast wealth of fashion knowledge. Dates, for instance. Or weddings, or funerals.

Or job interviews. 

To be fair, Karamatsu’s suggestion really had occurred during a moment of weakness – not even two minutes earlier, the hiring manager at a psychiatrist’s office had just hung up the phone after confirming that she’d be seeing Todomatsu the following week. Todomatsu had been left gaping; he had applied for the job on a bit of a whim, mostly because ‘receptionist’ was a couple steps above ‘barista’ on the social ladder, but he had never believed he’d actually get an invitation for a job interview. His multiple job applications over the years to various potential employers had been met with silence more often than not, after all. 

After the quiet click of the other line hanging up, Todomatsu had slowly lowered his cell phone from his ear and sunk onto the couch. Before he’d had a chance to so much as process the conversation though, the bedroom door had slid open, and Todomatsu had looked up from his phone, held loosely in his hand and still connected to the dead line, only to have his gaze fall on Karamatsu’s leather jacket and dorky shades.

Karamatsu hadn’t wasted any time asking what was up (he always seemed to immediately know, somehow, when something was wrong) but even then, even before Todomatsu had responded quietly, voice laced with awe, to break the news of his interview, even before Karamatsu had so much as opened his mouth to ask if his younger brother was okay, the thought was already present Todomatsu’s mind; it had planted itself there the moment Karamatsu had walked into the room – if he was getting an interview, and potentially a job, at a high-end psychiatrist’s office, Todomatsu was going to need a new wardrobe of business-appropriate clothing. The suggestion to hit the mall together may have been voiced first by Karamatsu, but at the end of the day, Todomatsu knew that he would’ve ended up asking for his older brother to come shopping with him regardless. 

(He would certainly never admit that out loud, though.)

And so, a pleasant Thursday afternoon in spring found Todomatsu walking to the mall in the company of his style-savvy older brother. As the automatic doors slid open, his ears were met with a familiar tidal wave of echoing voices and bustling crowds that quickly settled into a low background hum. He breathed deeply, savouring the smell of clean floors and perfume and fresh clothes mixing with the general scent of humanity. Beside him, a tiny, genuine smile tugged at Karamatsu’s lips, and Todomatsu knew, even in the absence of a mirror to check, that he was wearing a matching expression. 

There was nothing, absolutely nothing in the world, better than the first step into a shopping mall. 

“So, where would you like to go first?"

Karamatsu’s voice broke Todomatsu out of his reverie. He looked over at his older brother and shrugged. “You’re the expert here, not me."

“Don’t sell yourself short, dearest brother. You’ve got a much better fashion sense than I do.” 

Todomatsu couldn’t help but roll his eyes. “Karamatsu-niisan, please. You’re the one who practically has fashion magazines glued to his eyeballs twenty-four seven.” Something about Karamatsu’s tone had made Todomatsu want to punch his older brother square in the face. There had been no sarcasm in his statement, no irony, only pure truth – as if Karamatsu honestly believed the younger of the two of them had a better understanding of style. As if Karamatsu didn’t consciously choose to be a fashion disaster at least seventy percent of the time with the sole purpose of getting a reaction from his brothers, when he could just as easily be the poster boy for class and elegance if he would ever bother to try. “Besides, you know just as well as I do that all this dressy business nonsense isn’t really my thing."

Karamatsu smirked and flashed a thumbs up. “Don’t worry, little brother, by the end of today, you’ll be an expert in the field of dress codes. Prepare to get your PhD in fashion, courtesy of the University of Karamatsu!"

Todomatsu ignored the comment out of habit and gently pushed his older brother brother forward. “Come on, lets get going."

“What, you didn’t find my joke funny?” Offence was painted across Karamatsu’s face, but Todomatsu didn’t miss the subtle glimmer in his brother’s eye that signalled his act.

So we’re doing this now, then? Is that how it is? Todomatsu picked his sweetest, most innocent smile. “Oh, nii-san… As if I’m going to throw such a huge bet over one shitty joke. You’re going to have to try a lot harder than that if you want me to pick up your tab this weekend."

“Perfect,” Karamatsu grinned, “you know I wouldn’t have it any other way.” The glimmer in his eye grew into a full-blown sparkle that set echoes of a past conversation drifting through the back of Todomatsu’s mind—

‘Ah, it’s just that… the challenge is appealing, you know?'

—and he fought to hold back a grin of his own. If Karamatsu wanted a challenge, well, Todomatsu would gladly provide him one.

He tugged on the sleeve of his older brother’s jacket and pointed at the nearest store. “Nii-san. Let’s just get shopping already."

Karamatsu raised an eyebrow in confusion. “Todomatsu, that’s not… We won’t find business attire at that store."

“We’ll get around to that, don’t worry! But,” Todomatsu gave his older brother a knowing glance, “don’t tell me you’re not interested in doing a little personal shopping of your own, too.”

Karamatsu chuckled at that. “Yeah, fair enough.” His face relaxed into a soft smile. “You’re the most fun to shop with, anyways,” he said, so softly that Todomatsu wasn’t entirely sure he’d meant to say it out loud. 

“Hey,” Todomatsu threw a light punch at his brother’s shoulder, “no getting sentimental on me here. We’ve got some serious business to attend to.” 

“Sentimental? Who’s being sentimental?” Karamatsu asked as they stepped into the store, his face a perfect picture of innocence showing no traces of his emotions from moments before. Todomatsu felt his stomach do a single backflip; the way Karamatsu would instantly and completely switch from one expression to the next always threw him off kilter. That level of acting ability should be illegal.

The corners of Todomatsu’s mouth twitched, and he bit back the scowl that wanted to form. Relax, idiot. If Karamatsu was acting, then he needed to be on his guard — any strong reaction to any of Karamatsu’s intentional provocations was grounds for losing the bet, and there was no way Todomatsu was going to let Karamatsu win at all this week, much less before their afternoon even got started.

Besides, there was a lot of money on the line, here. The Saturday night bar tab for all six brothers was expensive enough on average, but for Todomatsu in particular it was a nightmare; losing the game was rare for him, so on the few occasions when it happened every single one of his scumbag older brothers would make a special point of drinking much more than usual. Todomatsu shuddered at the recollection of the last bill he’d had to pay on their behalf.

Yeah, I literally cannot afford to lose, like… ever again, he thought as approached a rack of cardigans. He would just need to be extra vigilant this afternoon; Karamatsu was sure to have some kind of plan to break his poker face. 

Todomatsu methodically pushed clothes hangers to the side as he perused the cardigans, and allowed himself a small smile. In all honesty, he was actually excited to see what Karamatsu had in store for him, and excited to beat him at his own game.

He pulled a mint green cardigan off the rack and held it up for examination, frowned, hung it back up, and continued with his browsing. It had taken a while for Todomatsu to understand the appeal of the bet for his older brother – where was the fun in getting ignored constantly and then paying the bar tab every weekend on top of that? Once Todomatsu had lost a few times though, all of Karamatsu’s grandiose talk of the appeal of challenges and the thrill of rivalry had begun to make sense; competing against each other had turned out to be surprisingly fun. Besides… 

(The next cardigan he selected was pastel blue, and Todomatsu smiled.)

Besides, truth be told… He appreciated the chance to spend some quality time with his older brother, anyway. 

Ugh. Who’s the sentimental one now, indeed?

“Totty!"

Todomatsu’s train of thought went flying off the rails at the sound of his nickname, and he turned his attention to his brother.  

“What do you think of this?"

Karamatsu was holding up a pair of jeans, and Todomatsu’s stomach lurched at the sight of the thickly embroidered patterns of swirls climbing up one leg. They weren’t the worst item of clothing he’d ever seen in his life, but they certainly weren’t wearable either. Behind the jeans, Karamatsu’s eyes were wide and expectant, as if he was honestly asking for his younger brother’s opinion and not just trying to provoke him into a fit of rage. 

Keeping his expression blank, Todomatsu carefully hung up the blue cardigan and turned back to Karamatsu.

“Not my style.” He kept his voice level and pushed past his older brother towards the store entrance. “Come on, lets keep moving."

They wandered out of the shop, and Todomatsu silently congratulated himself on keeping his cool. The likelihood of Karamatsu finding anything much worse than those pants in this mall was fairly low, so if Todomatsu could keep his poker face in that instance, he could probably do it for anything else Karamatsu came up with. 

Todomatsu smirked. He’d have to keep his guard up of course, but it wasn’t a battle he was guaranteed to lose. 

Suddenly, a hand was tugging at his sleeve. “That’s a good store for professional attire,” Karamatsu said, pointing across the hall. “Let’s go get you some interview clothes."

Ah, right. They’d come here with a purpose, after all.

As Todomatsu followed Karamatsu into the store in question, he couldn’t help but stare in awe. The distinctly separated sections for different types of formal wear and the rainbow displays of dress shirts along the walls gave the store a distinctly clean and crisp feeling – it was completely different from the casual ambiance of the trendy shops Todomatsu was used to frequenting, and it was downright intimidating. Did real adults actually shop in stores like this without breaking into panic attacks from the heavy professional vibes? Todomatsu swallowed nervously. Was this the same type of atmosphere he’d be dealing with at his new job? Would he be able to work in that atmosphere for the foreseeable future?

He felt a light touch on his shoulder, and Todomatsu tore his eyes away from the rest of the store to look at his older brother instead. Karamatsu’s expression was relaxed, but Todomatsu could spot the underlying concern in his eyes. 

“You okay?” 

Todomatsu let out a breath. “Yeah… Just suddenly feeling overwhelmed. I’ll be fine in a minute,” he murmured. 

Karamatsu gave his shoulder a gentle squeeze, and reassuring warmth spilled into Todomatsu’s chest.

Thank you for coming with me, he thought. He didn’t say it out loud, though – that level of sappiness was more Karamatsu’s domain than his. He changed the topic, instead. “What kind of stuff am I supposed to be buying anyways?”

“For a receptionist job interview? A dark suit would be ideal,” Karamatsu answered, and began to walk towards the suits section.

Todomatsu hurried to catch up, grimacing. “Suits are expensive… Can’t I just wear my blue suit?"

“It’s not the nicest suit, but you could, I guess… If that’s what you really want though, why ask me to come shop with you for interview clothes, my brother?” Karamatsu shot a wry grin over his shoulder.

“Shopping was your idea, dipshit.” Todomatsu threw a playful punch at the centre of Karamatsu’s back as the elder of the two chuckled. 

“You should get some nice dress shirts too. For when you actually get the job."

Todomatsu raised an eyebrow. “That’s not a guarantee, you know."

“Ah, true, true. A little optimism never hurt anybody, though! Here,” he grabbed a navy suit jacket off a rack, “this one is good. Try it."

“Let’s get some more suits and shirts together first,” Todomatsu said, taking the jacket from Karamatsu’s outstretched hand, “and I’ll try them all on in one shot.” Karamatsu nodded in agreement, and the hunt for formal wear began.

Todomatsu quickly lost track of time as they perused the maze of displays and clothing racks, each of them slowly collecting piles of shirts and jackets and ties. Karamatsu was being suspiciously helpful, given his earlier attempts to shock his younger brother into losing their bet. Todomatsu inspected every item that Karamatsu chose, but eventually he began to relax his guard the tiniest bit. It was unlikely, but maybe the ugly pants from earlier were going to be Karamatsu’s only attempt to take him by surprise.

That thought was… Strangely disappointing? Todomatsu shook his head and pushed it out of his mind as he opened the dressing room door to show off a potential interview outfit. He was greeted with two thumbs up from Karamatsu, followed by an exclamation of “Perfect fashion, Totty!” and one of those trademark million-watt grins. Todomatsu strode past Karamatsu without outwardly showing so much as a shred of acknowledgement for his brother's outburst. Inwardly, Todomatsu’s stomach was doing backflips. The idea of someone else observing as he chose which sets of clothes were his favourites had always felt so uncomfortable; he only liked being the centre of attention after he decided how to present himself, not while he was still in the process of making those decisions.

Of course, Karamatsu had insisted on seeing him try everything on, so obviously Todomatsu had to oblige.

(And if he happened to get a second opinion from Karamatsu in the process, well… It wasn’t as if second opinions were a bad thing, really.) 

Taking care to avoid meeting his older brother’s gaze, Todomatsu did a quick spin in front of the large mirror facing the row of dressing rooms. He had initially been on the fence about this particular outfit – a charcoal grey suit jacket over a pale pink dress shirt that Karamatsu had insisted he try on. However, seeing himself actually wearing it, Todomatsu couldn’t help but admit, however grudgingly, that it suited him really, really well. 

He stole a glance at Karamatsu’s reflection in the mirror, and the reflection smiled back encouragingly.

Todomatsu took a slow, deep breathe. “I think I’ll go with this for the interview.” He kept his voice steady and strong. There was no ‘I told you so’ from his elder brother, and a nearly imperceptible sigh of relief escaped Todomatsu’s lips. Any other brother would have said ‘I told you so’ had they been present, but Karamatsu knew better. Karamatsu knew what jokes were off-limits and what contexts to avoid making a big deal out of; he knew exactly how and when to play along with his youngest brother’s various compulsions and anxieties, and Todomatsu could not have been more appreciative of that fact.

(Maybe Todomatsu would thank him, after all. For helping him choose outfits. For not making a big deal out of all of this.)

Todomatsu spun around again and smiled. And then frowned – the outfit was incomplete. 

“Something wrong, brother?"

“I forgot a tie. Hold on a second.” Todomatsu slipped back into the dressing room and quickly began searching through the pile of ties they had collected. He was fairly certain one of them had grabbed a grey tie that would match the suit perfectly—

Flashes of gold and silver were suddenly assaulting his retinas, and Todomatsu felt his heart plunge into his stomach. His breath hitched as he forcibly strangled out the scream that had begun to well up in his throat. He’d been monitoring all items that Karamatsu had been choosing with extreme care – how on earth had the guy managed to slip this absolute monstrosity past Todomatsu?

He scowled at the offending tie with its wide, diagonal stripes worked out in gold and silver sequins, then started suddenly as he remembered the bet. 

Shit.

Todomatsu stole a fearful glance over his shoulder to check if Karamatsu had noticed his reaction, and relaxed upon seeing that the dressing room door had mercifully swung shut behind him. If it had been open… Todomatsu shuddered at the thought of a joyless night spent buying drinks for his shitty older brothers. 

Karamatsu would ruthlessly take advantage of any weakness Todomatsu showed. He needed to be far more careful.

“Totty? Found a tie yet?” To an average listener, Karamatsu’s voice held only mild curiosity at most, but Todomatsu was positive he could detect a hint of feigned innocence. 

As if he doesn’t know exactly what he did. Todomatsu snorted. Well, two can play at this game, asshole. He pocketed the tie, took a quick second to compose his expression, then popped his head out the door.

“I can’t find the tie I’m looking for? I swear we grabbed a grey one, just like the suit jacket, but it seems to have disappeared.” He knit his brows together just so to create a look of wide-eyed naïveté, and laced his voice with subtle overtones of hurt confusion. “Can you come in and help me look for it?"

Karamatsu’s face lit up. “Why, of course I can, my little Totty! I’ll be your saviour today. Just leave it to nii-san!” Todomatsu couldn’t tell if Karamatsu was just playing along or genuinely happy to have been asked for help – honestly, it was probably a bit of both. Knowing that at least a part of Karamatsu was genuinely excited so be asked for help almost made Todomatsu feel bad about the prank – almost. Not quite. At the end of the day, the satisfaction of watching his brother searching for something that just wasn’t there was far too strong to allow Tosomatsu to feel any kind of pity.

Admittedly, he was rather impressed with Karamatsu’s ability to keep his cool, and if he hadn’t been watching his older brother’s face with all the focus of a sniper lining up for a head shot, Todomatsu would never have guessed something was amiss. He was watching, though, so he didn’t miss the telltale frown that briefly pulled down the corners of Karamatsu’s lips, or the consternation that flashed through his eyes.

That’s right, keep looking. You’ll never find it. Todomatsu wondered what mystery was weaving itself in Karamatsu’s mind – did the elder brother suspect Todomatsu of having found and removed the flashy tie? Or did he think he’d made a mistake somehow and hadn’t actually managed to sneak it in with the rest of the ties after all? Todomatsu hoped it was the latter, and allowed himself the tiniest smirk at the thought.

Karamatsu was nothing if not meticulous, though, so Todomatsu knew he wouldn’t be letting his act slip even for a moment; he wouldn’t spend a single second longer than necessary searching for a missing tie, no matter how perturbed he was likely feeling at its disappearance. And so, like clockwork, it was barely half a minute before Karamatsu’s face brightened as he pulled a charcoal grey tie out of the pile.

“Would this be the tie you’re looking for, my brother?” 

“Ah, yes it is! Thank you so much, Karamatsu-niisan!” It’s certainly not the tie you’re looking for though, is it?

Honestly, Karamatsu’s ability to keep acting under pressure was truly impressive, but no act was good enough to completely fool his brothers. There wasn’t much for Todomatsu to latch onto – the slightly lacklustre glint in his eye, a subtle tenseness in around his shoulders, the unease with which he brushed his bangs off his forehead – but it was enough to make Todomatsu feel incredibly smug nonetheless. 

Later, much later, Todomatsu would think back on this incident, and come to realize that he’d experienced first hand how Karamatsu probably felt when trying to provoke his siblings into losing the bet. For now, though, Todomatsu didn’t think any further on his actions. He simply took the grey tie from his brother’s outstretched hand, quickly tied it around his neck, stole a quick glance at the small mirror in the dressing room, and grinned. Yes, he would definitely be wearing this outfit to the interview. He shooed his older brother out of the dressing room while he changed back into his street clothes, and, before leaving one last time, made sure to tuck the sequinned tie underneath its less-obnoxious brethren. 

Todomatsu was still grinning in the check out line, and while flirting with the cashier, and all the way out of the store. He couldn’t help it – he was just so proud of himself. He had managed to brave an intimidating business attire shop, acquire a good-looking suit for his job interview, avoid losing the drinking bet, and prank his painful older brother all in the course of a single afternoon of shopping. Today was playing out quite splendidly overall.

As the two brothers wandered through the mall, another one of Todomatsu’s favourite shops caught his eye, and he tugged urgently on Karamatsu’s sleeve. “Come on. Now that we’ve got the serious shopping out of the way, let’s have a little fun!” Without waiting for a response, Todomatsu grabbed his brother’s hand and began to pull him towards the store.

“Ah— Hey, Totty—!"

“Hurry up, Karamatsu-niisan,” Todomatsu whined as Karamatsu stumbled along behind him. 

Todomatsu felt himself relax the moment he crossed the threshold. Now this kind of store was where he belonged. He quickly fell into an easy rhythm of browsing shelves and clothing racks, and slowly began to collect items to try on.

He wasn’t sure how long they’d been in the store before he felt an urgent tap on his shoulder. 

“Totty!"

Todomatsu jumped, and immediately steeled himself for the possibility of Karamatsu trying to show off some eyesore again. He was almost curious, in a twisted way – what could Karamatsu have possibly found in Todomatsu’s favourite store to spook his younger brother? Would it be another pair of pants? A shirt, this time? Or perhaps some accessories – maybe a really ugly scarf or hat? Slowly, Todomatsu turned around, with all the determination of a knight preparing to meet his destiny on the battlefield. 

He didn’t scream.

He didn’t even flinch.

On the outside, Todomatsu was a picture of serenity – no, not serenity… Pure, cold detachment. He was marble, he was stone. 

On the inside, he was reeling in shock. The sweater Karamatsu was holding up for his judgement was positively hideous. If the jeans had been ugly, and the tie had been a monstrosity, then this sweater was an absolute abomination. Its very existence was a crime, a sin, even. Every human involved in its creation deserved to be thrown in jail for life.

Where did he even find that in THIS store?

Calling it an eyesore would have been an understatement; the clashing patterns of paisley and stripes and swirling designs were bad enough on their own, but on top of that the whole garment was woven from thick, scratchy, technicolour wool that was so nightmarish it almost made the huge, blocky buttons running up the front of the sweater look stylish (it was a pullover sweater, why did it even have buttons???)

Nausea gripped his stomach, but Todomatsu endured, for the sake of the bet. For the sake of his wallet. Because as disturbingly heinous as that sweater was, existing in its presence was still a better fate than being forced to pay for all five of his older brothers’ drinks at the end of the week. He maintained his facade of indifference against all odds – he even met Karamatsu’s excited gaze with an apathetic look of his own.

Before Karamatsu could so much as open his mouth to ask for his opinion, Todomatsu put on a small, calculated smile.

“That sweater suits you, nii-san. You should buy it."

Todomatsu was definitely a bit disappointed when Karamatsu didn’t seem rattled by his lack of reaction, or his suggestion. 

Even worse was Karamatsu's response.

“Heh…” Karamatsu lifted his hand to cradle his chin in thought, and raised an eyebrow. “Your superior fashion knowledge reigns supreme once again, Totty. Yes, this sweater… I can feel it calling to me, like a woman calls for her lover. And like a true man, I will respond in kind."

Todomatsu was very practiced at ignoring the vast majority of Karamatsu’s nonsensical babbling, but this… This was just too much. Is he saying he’s going to fuck the sweater? 

But no, he couldn’t break now, not when he’d already made it this far. He had stared into the void, and the void had stared back, but he needed to keep fighting!

Keeping his face impassive, Todomatsu reached for the price tag. “It’s six thousand yen, nii-san. But I think it would be worth it, honestly. You would look amazing.” The words dripped from his lips like honey, sweet in their innocence. They were bullshit, of course, and Todomatsu knew that Karamatsu knew that Todomatsu was lying through his teeth, but the game had never been about knowing – as long as he kept his cool, he’d be safe. 

“Six thousand yen? I’d pay at least one hundred thousand for this glorious piece of worksmanship!” Karamatsu threw a hand dramatically across his forehead.

Todomatsu gave a disinterested nod and turned back to the shelf of t-shirts he’d been perusing. Taking the hint, Karamatsu wandered off towards the cash register to make his unfortunate purchase.

A celebratory smile cracked Todomatsu’s poker face. I did it! I survived! He had successfully survived another week of Karamatsu’s stupid bet. Maybe it was a bit preemptive to be thinking like that – he wasn’t completely out of the danger zone just yet, what with the remainder of the day on the line, plus another two full days to get through before Saturday night. However, he was hard pressed to think of anything that could possibly be worse than what he’d just witnessed, so he’d allow himself a little internal celebration.

It certainly felt good to be a winner, after all, and Todomatsu wanted to cherish this moment forever. 

“Oi, Shittymatsu! Hurry up!"

“Karamatsu! Stop spending so much time styling your hair or whatever it is you’re doing in there! The alcohol is waiting!"

“Let’s just leave without him."

“Niiiiiiiiiiii-san!! Let’s get going super base steal home run!!"

“Karamatsu-niisan, just accept your fate already!"

All five of them knew exactly what he was doing, of course. Over time, an unwritten rule of the bet had established itself – the stakes didn’t reset until they all arrived at Chibita’s cart on Saturday night. As such, it wasn’t unheard of for Karamatsu to attempt some last-minute trick to get one of them to lose in the eleventh hour before the game ended for the week. 

Of course, the tactic had only worked once, ever, in all the years they’d been playing. 

Todomatsu huffed and pulled out his phone to check his text messages. Why couldn’t Karamatsu seem to understand that the game had ended two days ago during their shopping trip? He should just give up.

(Nervous butterflies swirled in Todomatsu’s stomach. He ignored them and prayed for his brother to move faster, already.)

“Karamat—!"

“I’m coming, I’m coming!” Karamatsu’s voice drifted in from the stairwell, followed by quick footsteps, and finally the man himself appeared around the corner.

Todomatsu’s heart stopped.

“My apologies, dearest brothers!"

Four sets of eyes glazed over, and four brothers turned to file out the door. 

Someone was screaming.

“I just wanted to try on some of the amazing fashion our little Totty helped me choose when we went shopping this week!"

It was Todomatsu.

He was screaming.

“Anyways, let us now go forth onto another night of merriment! Kanpai!"

He couldn’t stop screaming.

Todomatsu felt like he’d been hit full-force by a truck, or a wrecking ball, or an asteroid. In his pride at having managed to play his brother, he’d forgotten that Karamatsu had actually purchased the horrific technicolour sweater.

He’d also forgotten about the existence of the sparkly tie. And the embroidered jeans.

The three of them, together, on one person, paired with Karamatsu’s trademark gold sequinned boots, was enough to make Todomatsu want to jump off a cliff.

He must have gone back for those by himself, yesterday.

“Come on, Totty. It’s time to celebrate!” He felt a strong hand grip his hoodie and drag him out the door. 

Somewhere in the distance, he was dimly aware of five scumbag older brothers cackling. 

Todomatsu groaned. It was going to be an expensive evening.