Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

The library’s third floor was Shinobu’s sanctuary. It was the kind of quiet where it wasn’t empty, but not full either. The soft flipping of pages, scraping of highlighters on paper, and the distant rhythmic typing of keyboards kept Shinobu company. For two weeks, she had been sitting by the window, stacking her pharmacology books next to her into the form of a wall, forming a cubicle of sorts. Her midterms were approaching, and she couldn’t be more stressed.

And for two weeks, she had been sharing the space with a statue.

Three tables across from her sat a raven-haired man, surrounded by his own fortress of books, their titles promising a rich world of financial principles and ledgers. His movements were silent, calm. The way he studied in stillness was a total contrast to Shinobu, who fidgeted often with her pens, sometimes stretching out on the table after being defeated by her books.

Maybe he was more deserving of the title ‘Gargoyle’. Statues didn’t move after all.

And so, Shinobu labelled him as ‘Accounting Gargoyle’ in her mind.

On a Tuesday afternoon, Shinobu was pushing through her exhaustion from her lack of sleep. She sipped on an iced coffee she bought earlier, hoping that the caffeine would be the saviour of her exam. While leaning on the table to give her back a good stretch, she accidentally pushed her pen off the table.

She groaned as she stood up to retrieve her pen from the front of the table, only to notice someone walking by her table. Upon hearing the clanking of the pen against the ground, he turned towards it. “Huh. Accounting Gargoyle,” Shinobu thought.

He bent down to pick up her pen, putting it on her table. Shinobu murmured a soft “thanks” to him, the word feeling too loud for the quiet space. He only gave her a small nod, no smile, no words, and left the library.

It was at that moment that Shinobu realised he had one of the most beautiful pairs of eyes she had ever seen. It was like staring into the ocean. A shade as blue as it was, a depth as unreachable as so. It was calm, gentle, soothing. How could someone’s eyes be void of emotion, yet feel as if it was full of it?

Shinobu shook herself out of her thoughts, reminding herself of the mountain of materials she had to sort through. Her eyes went back to her highlighted notes. Her mind, however, seemed to have never left those serene eyes.

Just like that, whether they knew it or not, their worlds started twining together, bit by bit.

⨳

A few days later, Shinobu was packing up her things. She hauled the heavy tote bag over her shoulder, walking over to the stairs that led down from the third floor. She felt a presence behind her as she walked down. Accounting Gargoyle.

Ever since the day he picked up her pen, Shinobu began subconsciously paying attention to his actions. Creepy, I know. Her mind would drift to him all of a sudden, and she would catch herself staring right at him. She began noticing the small details about him that would’ve gone unnoticed before. The way he slightly furrowed his brows once in a while, how he would move to ruffle through his hair and push it back, or even how he would lightly trace the edges of his books with his fingertips.

Most of all, she noticed how their entry and exit times from the library seemed to be similar. He was always a short distance in front of or behind her whenever she left and entered.

In a way, she felt like a stalker. The thought of that made Shinobu shudder mentally. She certainly did not want to be viewed as a crazed fangirl stalking her idol.

It was a weird feeling. She was aware of his presence before, but she wouldn’t pay attention to him. Just what changed? The girl wasn’t sure. She pursed her lips.

Her midterms were in a week, and she wouldn’t let some trivial matter like this take up her brain space. After all, Kimetsu College & University wasn’t a place for flunkers. Money alone wouldn’t get you a spot. The university prided itself on its admissions made only by academic strengths.

Shinobu was at the top of her class, and she couldn’t afford to let that ranking slip. Her parents wouldn’t be mad, of course. Her father owned a worldwide enterprise, and he made sure to spoil his three daughters rotten. If she ever told him she wanted to drop out of school, he would be elated and ask her to take over the company instead.

She studied for herself. Since she was young, she had always loved how something could be both medicine and poison. Her curiosity pushed her to pursue pharmacology. It was fascinating to her.

Shinobu got in her car, turned on some music, and drove back to her house. It was getting late, and she hadn’t yet eaten dinner. Her stomach grumbled, as if responding to her thoughts.

She unlocked the door to her house. Well, actually, it was her and Mitsuri’s house. They decided to stay together since neither of them actually enjoyed living alone. Shinobu was greeted by the sight of Mitsuri lounging comfortably on the sofa, a moisturising mask on her face.

“Hiya Shinobu! You’re back late”

“I was studying,” Shinobu yawned.

After a quick shower, Shinobu settled on her study desk. She took out her books and laid them out. With a stretch and an encouraging “Go! Go!” to herself, she buried herself in her books again.

Studying in the library felt better to Shinobu. Being surrounded by endless shelves of books just helped her focus better.

She read and wrote and memorised. After what seemed like hours of studying, or perhaps it was only minutes? The girl had lost count of time. Her phone buzzed. She ignored it at first, deciding to complete the subtopic before looking at texts. It buzzed again. She ignored it.

Buzz

Buzz

Buzz

After the fifth buzz, Shinobu sighed and picked up the phone.

✨HASHIRA✨

@UZUIHEAVEN: My loves and I are experimenting with sushi made with GOLDEN LEAVES! It shall be the most heavenly meal ever conceived.

@leave_me_alone: are you fucking kidding me. I had a gas station hot dog.

@smilingmenace: I'm sure its very aesthetically pleasing, Tengen. Do tell us whether its actually edible.

@UMAI_EATS: THAT’S AN AMAZING IDEA. I SHALL TRY MAKING SOME GOLDEN CUTLETS NEXT!

Shinobu switched her phone to silent and put it down, smiling. Her friends were one of a kind, truly. They had known each other since middle school, although Tengen, Rengoku and Sanemi were two years older than her, all three of them being 21. Mitsuri was a year older than Shinobu. Her father being business partners with the Kochou enterprise, the two knew each other since they were toddlers.

Although the text messages reminded her that she still hadn’t eaten dinner. Shinobu left her room, walking towards the kitchen for something to eat. Mitsuri was no longer in the living room, probably having gone to her room.

She settled on a bowl of cornflakes. Bringing the bowl back to her room, she walked by the fish tank displayed next to the corridor. The deep blue background reminded her of a certain man.

It messed with her mind. Just why was she thinking of him so often?

Chapter Text

Shinobu glanced towards the clock in the corner of the room. 14:50, it read.

Shit. She had a lecture at 3, and she had to get across one side of the university to the other in under 10 minutes. She quickly stuffed her things into her bag and practically jumped down the stairs. It didn’t help at all that it was raining cats and dogs outside. Worst of all, she forgot to bring an umbrella.

She walked out the large library doors and stared at the unwavering rain falling down diagonally. She contemplated running through the rain, but she wouldn’t enjoy sitting in an air-conditioned lecture hall wet from head to toe. She couldn’t sacrifice her books. It was right before her exams, after all.

She felt someone approach her. Looking to her side, Accounting Gargoyle was pulling on his grey raincoat. He looked down at her and pursed his lips, as if sympathising with her.

After a very, very slight nod (which Shinobu definitely would’ve missed had she not been staring at him attentively), he left the building.

Shinobu felt a small pang inside her chest as she watched him walk away. What was she expecting? They were strangers, after all. He wouldn’t sacrifice his only raincoat to help her.

Something was seriously wrong with her, Shinobu thought.

She grumbled to herself, then lifted her tote bag above her head and made a run for the opposite building. She only hoped the wrapping on her books could withstand some water.

When she managed to enter the lecture hall, it was 2:59. She was panting from running all the way there, strands of her hair and her clothes wet from the rain. She got in her seat and pulled out her handkerchief, wiping down her hair as the lecturer went on.

She prayed she wouldn’t catch a cold.

⨳

Shinobu caught a cold.

She thought she was fucked. Her midterms were in 4 days. How would she be able to focus with the constant sneezing? Or what if her fever got worse and started clouding her brain?

Mitsuri had taken a trip to a nearby pharmacy to grab some medication.

“Shinobu! Didn’t I tell you to take a break from all that studying? You’re not going to get better!” Mitsuri shoved a few pills and a bottle of water into Shinobu’s palm.

“I know you need to study, but pushing yourself too far isn’t good for you! Come on now, Nonobu, eat your meds!” Mitsuri huffed.

Shinobu grumbled and swallowed her pills. She would be fine, probably…

⨳

The next day, Shinobu woke up feeling even more tired than she was before sleeping. Countdown: three days until midterms.

She forced herself up and stumbled towards the bathroom. A shower would make her feel better. (It, in fact, did not. Shinobu ended up feeling groggy the whole day).

She blow-dried her hair, then clipped the upper half up with a blue and purple butterfly clip. She pulled on a purple fleece sweatshirt — one of her favourite pieces of clothing, and a simple black pleated skirt. Her outfit was paired with white high socks and a pair of black Mary Janes.

She left the house with Mitsuri.

“Shinobu, I’m driving today!” Mitsuri giggled. The pink and green-haired girl was a very… enthusiastic driver. Shinobu couldn’t help but look a little bit nervous.

“Come on! Don’t look that scared, it’s not like I'm going to crash or something.” Shinobu narrowed her eyes at the other girl.

“You did crash the car once, I haven’t forgotten.”

“That was one time! And don’t act like you didn’t enjoy the thrill of it!”

About a year ago, Mitsuri and Shinobu were having a carpool session together, and Mitsuri got so hyped up over Justin Bieber’s ‘Baby’ that she forgot about the wheel. They ended up crashing straight into a tree.

The two somehow found the situation funny and laughed like mentally unstable psych ward patients at that time. Any passerbys would’ve been creeped out.

“I have an exam coming up, girlie, can’t afford to die.” Mitsuri pouted.

⨳

Mitsuri waved Shinobu goodbye. The former had classes, while the latter was free to do her own revisions till 10 a.m. Shinobu decided to grab a coffee to jumpstart her still groggy mind. Her cold hadn’t been too bad, fortunately. She was now left with an extremely tired body and mind, plus a slightly runny nose.

She lined up at the campus coffee shop, taking her phone out to play some minigames while she waited.

“Combo!” the game chimed.

“Combo!”

“Excellent!”

“Combo!”

“Combo!”

“No, it’s fine… I’ll be there.” Huh? Did the game update or something? The new voice sounds hot. Wait — huh? Shinobu turned her head around slightly.

There he was. Raven-black hair tied into a ponytail, deep ocean blue eyes, a plain black shirt and black trousers. Accounting Gargoyle! The man was on his phone with someone, his brows furrowed as if contemplating what to do.

“So that’s what his voice sounds like…” Shinobu thought. Maybe she could try to record it down and get her game modified to use his voice. Wait — just what was she thinking?!

“Then it’s settled! See you!” A voice over the line giggled. It sounded girlish, sweet and cute. Her tone when she spoke to him was cheerful, like a girlfriend talking to her beloved.

Shinobu didn’t mean to listen in on others’ conversations, but her curiosity got the best of her this time. It was Accounting Gargoyle, after all. She still didn’t understand why her mind kept drawing her to him.

The important part was, Accounting Gargoyle has a girlfriend?! That stoic, emotionless rock was capable of bagging a girl?! Who would even date a guy like him?

Shinobu stopped herself from overthinking the matter. She could just be a family member, right? Or… a really sweet-sounding femboy! Wait, no, that’s worse. And what did it matter to her anyways? They were strangers, for gods sake!

Although Shinobu never expected Accounting Gargoyle’s voice to be that gentle. To speak in such a manner, the person on the line must be very dear to him. The girl mentally slapped herself. “Why are you still thinking about him?!” She scolded herself in her mind.

That afternoon, Shinobu headed to the library as usual. She took her seat and flipped open her books. Just before she started reading, her eyes flicked up towards the area three tables across, as if it had become routine for her to do so.

The usually occupied space was empty. Gone were the mountains of books. Gone was the emotionless rock that she had developed a habit of looking for.

“Stop it, Shinobu…” She murmured to herself. Where he goes has nothing to do with her.

The girl started her study session. But something was different today. She couldn’t focus completely. Her mind kept straying away from her study materials. She grumbled and forced herself to go on.

A few hours later, she closed her books. Once again, she looked three tables across. Still not there. She sighed to herself. Something inside her felt hollow, like an unfinished goal.

She made her way to the main building, where Mitsuri waited for her.

“Shinobu-chan!” Mitsuri smiled widely when she saw her friend. Upon a closer look at her face, Mitsuri frowned. “Dear Shinobu, what has you all gloomy today?”

“Nothing, it’s just the sickness.” Shinobu yawned.

Mitsuri looked like she was pondering whether or not to press on, but she brightened up after a few moments. “Alright, you better get some sleep when we get back, okay?” Shinobu hummed in response.

She might or might not have dreamt of him that night.

Chapter Text

Countdown to midterms: 1 day.

Shinobu was stressed out of her mind. It was 7 p.m. The campus library shuts its doors at 8, so she had another hour of precious study time.

Today, the man three tables across was there. His state matched that of Shinobu’s. Unruly hair was nothing out of the ordinary when it came to the man. In fact, neat hair would probably look weird on him. However, his hair today couldn’t even be called unruly. It was beyond that.

He looked like he’d been ruffling with his hair, probably tugging on it, judging by the position of a few chunks.

The library was mostly empty, with most students having already gone home due to the late hour. The two, however, were going strong in their studies, looking nothing like having the intention of leaving anytime soon.

Shinobu groaned as she sprawled over the table. It was a habit of hers whenever her back got sore, and she was stressed. “Just one more day…” She thought.

Her mind drifted to the man in the distance. She propped herself up with her chin resting on her knuckles. He had his head buried in his hands, staring down at his book. The sight brought Shinobu a tiny bit of humour. For the first time, she felt a sense of camaraderie.

Oh, he was stressed. Anyone could see that. Shinobu certainly could, and it brought a smile to her face knowing the man could actually feel emotions.

Shinobu was snapped out of her trance by the notification sound on her phone — a cute bubble pop. She looked towards it to find her five-person friend group texting her.

✨HASHIRA✨

@UZUIHEAVEN: MINIONS! TOMORROW! THE STAGE WILL BE OUR CANVAS! THE MUSIC OUR PAINT! BE THERE OR BE TOTALLY UN-FLASHY!

@UMAI_EATS: I HAVE PREPARED A NEW SETLIST THAT WILL IGNITE THE VERY SOULS OF THE AUDIENCE! 🔥🔥

@leave_me_alone: can you idiots stop spamming? sum of us r tryna work.

@pink_strawberry: EEEE! Shinobu and i will DEFINITELY be there! righttttt Shinobuuu 🥺👉🏻👈🏻

@leave_me_alone: shes prob still studying -_-

Shinobu smiled. Her friends may be overwhelming at times, but they sure were fun to be around. She couldn’t imagine her life without either of them.

She took another glance at the gargoyle. He was still deep inside the world of books. Shinobu took his determination as her motivation and started studying again.

⨳

“Alright, pens down.” The proctor said.

Shinobu. Was. FREE! She couldn’t contain her smile when her paper was collected. The torture was over. She did well, in her opinion.

She packed up her belongings and moved towards the door. Once out, she spotted Mitsuri in the hallways.”Shinobu! How did it go? You look horrible. Did you get enough sleep?” Mitsuri pouted at her.

“I think I did well.” Shinobu grinned.

“Perfect! I know just the way to celebrate! You know the guys are playing at a Live House tonight, right?” Shinobu tilts her head to the side, an eyebrow raised.

“I’ve been thinking, we’ve never actually seen their band perform! It’s the perfect way to celebrate!” Mitsuri was practically jumping as she talked to Shinobu, eyes beaming with excitement.

“You want me to go with ya, right?” Shinobu questioned

“Pretty pleaseeeeeeee, Nonobuu.” Mitsuri stared at her with puppy eyes.

“Fine.” The pink-haired girl almost burst with joy.

⨳

Shinobu donned a crop top paired with a denim skirt, Mitsuri deciding on a ruffly pink backless top with a miniskirt. Shinobu stared at Mitsuri’s half-exposed chest.

Sometimes she couldn’t help but feel jealous.

The Live House was close to Shinobu’s expectations. It was dark, and smelled oddly of beer and floor cleaners. The two girls procured some drinks while waiting for the bands to start playing.

“Shinobu! I think they’re about to get on stage!” Mitsuri dragged her friend closer to the stage, pushing through the crowd.

Shinobu clung to her drink, letting all the residual stress from her midterms get washed away with the noise of the crowd.

Then, their friends took to the stage.

Mitsuri started squealing in excitement as bright spotlights flashed on Tengen, who was clad in a shiny sequiny outfit, and stood up from his drums. He let out a cheer that sent the crowd into an uproar. The spotlights then shifted to allow a view of the rest of the band.

Sanemi was slouched over his bass guitar, looking like he would rather be anywhere else. His loose jacket was sliding off, and he wore no shirt underneath, providing a full view of his well-toned abs.

Rengoku grabbed the mic enthusiastically, grinning towards the loud crowd. “Good evening!” His voice was so booming that Shinobu flinched a little. The man had enough energy to power the entire crowd.

Then there were two faces that Shinobu had never seen. A shorter, masked man standing behind the keyboard, eyes boring into the crowd as if scrutinising each and every one of them. On the other side of the stage, a black haired man with long, wolf-cut hair stood, an electric guitar hanging from his shoulder strap.

Shinobu thought he looked a bit familiar. She strained her eyes to look closer at him. The man flicked his hair to the back, unintentionally allowing Shinobu better view of his face.

Eh? Isn’t that —

“Are you ready, everyone? Let’s fucking roll!” Rengoku shouted through the mic. He then started counting the band in, and the room exploded with sound. Tengen’s drums a thunderous cascade, Sanemi’s bass a relentless pulse. But it was the electric guitar that sliced through the music, a clean, melodic line brimming with soul and passion.

Shinobu’s eyes were locked on him. His fingers moved across the fretboard like water, smooth and fluid-like. It was a complete contrast to what she knew of him. In her memory, he was calm, emotionless, quiet.

On stage, however, he wasn't quiet. He was intense, he was wild. His hair, free from the usual ponytail, swayed while he strummed his guitar. The way he played was like he poured every ounce of emotion inside him into the guitar.

It was truly captivating.

He threw his head back to fling the hair out of his face. In that moment, Shinobu was sure she saw something shiny on his ear. THE EMO HAS PIERCINGS?

Putting aside her shock, she stared at him again, taking in his entire person. He was… good looking, Shinobu admitted. His wolf-cut hair fit him well. Perhaps if he let it down more, girls would be swarming over him. Wait, maybe that’s how he bagged that girl from the phone call!

Hair really is important to men, huh.

After the song finished, he stuck out his tongue and lazily licked his lips, head slightly tilted as he looked at the crowd. It was safe to say the people erupted in an uproar watching his actions, nearly drowning out Rengoku, who was introducing the crowd to their next song with his booming voice.

He sure knows his ways with the ladies, huh.

Shinobu felt a smile creeping up her face. Accounting Gargoyle, you sure are an interesting person.

Chapter Text

Three days after the gig, Shinobu woke up to the sounds of a girl wailing. She ventured out of her room, still rubbing at her eyes. As she entered the living room, a pink rocket launched at her, causing her to stumble backwards.

She blinked her eyes twice. Mitsuri was clinging to her friend like her life depended on it. Tears rolled out of her eyes like raging waterfalls.

“Shinobuu, he broke up with meee!” Mitsuri wailed. Her words were fumbled together and hard to make out.

“Calm down, Mitsuri… Sit down, and you can tell me all about it.” Shinobu patted her friend’s back. The pink-haired girl gave a soft “okay”, and the two moved to sit on the couch.

“I woke up and was about to text him,” sniffle, “We were supposed to hang out today,” sniffle, “But then I saw his messages, he said- he said,” sniffle, “He’s breaking up with me, that I’m too much for him.”

Shinobu furrowed her brows. She never quite liked Mitsuri’s boyfriend. Or ex-boyfriend, now. She thought him a selfish bastard who only dated Mitsuri for the fun of it. Whenever Mitsuri actually needed him, he would make up lame excuses like “Not free”.

Worst of all, he was the one who hit on her friend at the start. After Mitsuri got hooked on him, he was like a whole different person. Distant, cold, unavailable. Shinobu had tried telling her friend he wasn’t the one for her, but Mitsuri really did like him.

“I– I tried asking him what I did wrong, but the message wouldn’t send.” More tears rolled out of her eyes. “I think he blocked me.”

Shinobu wanted to beat that guy up. She wasn’t one for much violence, but she would fight a gorilla for the people she held dear.

“Mitsuri, maybe it’s for the best. He doesn’t deserve an angel like you,” Shinobu shook her head.

Mitsuri hummed, her head buried in a pillow. The other girl got a feeling her friend wouldn't be over him for some time. “Mitsuri, how ‘bout we go out tonight? There's a new movie out.”

“Okay…”

Shinobu gave her a hug. “Cheer up, okay? I'll grab something delicious for ya” Maybe she could get her doughnuts. Or mochi?

“Thank you, Shinobu.”

⨳

Shinobu arrived at a nearby cafe. She planned to take a walk in the park outside after she grabbed a coffee and dessert for Mitsuri. Lining up at the counter, her mind went to how her friend definitely deserved better than that bitch of a man.

Mitsuri was a sweet girl. Her energy could light up the whole room. Shinobu hoped her friend would find someone who truly loved her soon.

Shinobu’s thoughts drifted to herself. She had never dated anyone. Would she grow old alone? Would she die all alone? Perhaps she could buy more fish to keep her company in her old age.

An image of a certain black-haired man popped up in her head. Well, pop up might not be the right word for it. Truth be told, he had never left Shinobu’s mind ever since that night she saw him perform.

The way he flicked his hair, the way his tongue extended to lick at his lips, the way those big, veiny hands slid across his guitar. “I wonder what else those hands could do–” Shinobu threw her thoughts into the trash.

Everything about him just seemed to be automatically imprinted in her memory. She often caught herself thinking about him during her daily activities. She had McDonald's for dinner the day before, and her mind wondered what his favourite meal on the menu was. She once tripped on a rock on campus, and she contemplated whether or not he was a clumsy person.

Shinobu wasn’t one to pin on someone who already had a partner. However, her mind kept grasping at the chances that he was single. The logical part of her wanted to shut down thoughts of him, while her heart pulled her back towards him.

“What would you like to order?” Shinobu told the cashier to pack up one of each dessert they had, plus an iced latte. She watched as the cashier’s eyes widened slightly, but he still keyed in her order nonetheless.

The cafe was well-known in the area for its large variety of desserts. Her total bill rounded off to a whopping 400 bucks. She was handed four bags full of boxed-up desserts and her drink. It was hard to carry as she had to make sure none of the desserts tilted and got squashed against the box.

She turned to walk out of the cafe as her hand fumbled with the straps of the bag to get a better grip. With her attention on the bags, she failed to notice a man standing right behind her. The drink in her left hand smashed straight into thick textbooks, spilling over them.

Oof.

A horrified Shinobu looks up, apology ready, and freezes. All too familiar ocean blue eyes stare down at her, void of emotion as usual. He stares at his wet textbooks, then back at Shinobu. His expression was unreadable, but it wasn’t angry. He just looked… still.

Shinobu started sprouting out apologies, bowing her head every once or so. “I’m so so sorry, allow me to get you new books. I’ll pay for your coffee!” She got no reaction from the man. He continued to stare at her.

Shinobu grimaced mentally. “I’m very sorry. Please let me pay for your things as an apology.”

“There’s no need.” Shinobu let out a breath she didn’t know she'd been holding. Great. A reply was better than nothing.

“Please, I insist.” She looked at him with a pleading expression.

There was a moment of awkward silence between them. He nodded. Shinobu brightened up and beckoned him to take a seat while she bought his coffee. “What would you like?”

“A black coffee”, Shinobu nodded.

⨳

She sat down on the chair opposite him, putting a cup of hot coffee on the coaster. “Here,” She gave him a smile. It was left unreturned. Shinobu wondered whether he was actually born from a rock.

“Sooo, how much are your books?”

“I don’t know.” An awkward silence settled between them.

“Would 500 be enough?” Shinobu glanced towards his face, searching for some kind of reaction. At this distance, she noticed how he smelt of the sea. Cool and refreshing, like a dip in the ocean. Or maybe it was his aura that gave off that feel?

His hair was tied into his usual ponytail, although a few stray chunks littered across his face. He wore no piercings today, looking every part the quiet, boring boy. As boring as he looked, though, he was undeniably handsome. His features well defined, sharp, but smooth.

“Yes.” He stated flatly. Shinobu realised she was staring and snapped her eyes down to the table. A slight shade of pink tinged her cheeks.

“Uhm, can I have your code? I’ll transfer the money to you.” He looked at her for another awkward moment before taking out his phone and letting her scan the QR.

A name popped up on her screen after she scanned it. ‘Tomioka Giyuu’, it read. Shinobu was reminded that she never actually knew his name. She always referred to him as Accounting Gargoyle.

Giyuu looked at his phone as a notification chimed in: Received 500$ from Kochou Shinobu. He actually wasn’t sure how much all his books were worth together, and he certainly didn’t need a stranger paying for him. Was 500 too much or too less? He had no idea.

Giyuu had no issues with money. His parents died young, but left him and his sister a wealthy inheritance. He could easily have bought another set himself, but he didn’t know how to reject the girl’s persistent offers.

Kochou Shinobu was her name, right? That explained the butterfly clip she had in her hair.

“Electric guitar, eh? I didn’t take you for that kind,” Shinobu asked hesitantly. Something in her was feeling bold today, wanting to strike up a conversation with the man.

Giyuu’s eyes widened slightly. “Score!” Shinobu said in her mind. It was amusing to her how out of place the man looked with surprise on his face.

“How do you–” He struggled to find the right words. The frustrated expression he had brought a giggle to Shinobu’s lips. Giyuu looked at her with an almost horrified look as she laughed.

“Chill out, I saw you perform the other day at the Live House,” she chuckled.

The man looked like a mixture of embarrassment and shock. He felt exposed in a way. Giyuu usually liked to be alone, finding the quiet comforting. But when it came to his guitar, it was like another part of him took over.

He found himself expressing his emotions through music. Every strum adding fuel to a fire inside him. That fire made him wild; it allowed him to fully let loose. Outside of the world of music, however, the usual quieter part of him was the side he showed.

Being quiet didn’t draw attention to him, and he enjoyed that. That’s why it freaked him out when an almost-stranger acknowledged the other side of him. “Was it good?” he asked softly. Maybe this was a chance to get feedback from someone other than his band members. His sister often told him to focus on the positives, after all.

“The performance? Very! It was amazing!” Shinobu grinned at him. Their interaction was finally getting somewhere, and she was overjoyed. She didn’t feel that much like a stalker anymore.

“Thanks for watching.”

“You sound like a YouTuber.”

“Oh.”

Shinobu glanced at the time– 4.30. She would have to get back soon to get ready for her outing with Mitsuri. “Tomioka-san,” she tested his name on her tongue. “I’ll be going now. See you around.”

Receiving a slight nod from the man, she picked up the bags of treats and left the cafe. A small smile formed on her face as she walked. This was her very first conversation with Mr Accounting Gargoyle. Eh…no, no. It was her very first conversation with Mr Tomioka Giyuu.

A conversation that lived in their heads for the remainder of the day.

Chapter Text

✨HASHIRA✨
@leave_me_alone: [picture of a completely bent kendo sword]

@leave_me_alone: some little shit did this. im pissed and impressed at the same time

@pink_strawberry: oemgeee was it a child prodigy? how cuteeeeeee🥺🥺

@smilingmenace: Maybe future problem child would be the better term.

@UMAI_EATS: WHAT BURNING PASSION! YOU MUST NURTURE THIS YOUNG SOUL WELL, SANEMI!

Unlike the rest of his friends, Sanemi didn’t attend university. He was a child prodigy at kendo, and once he became of age, his elderly kendo instructor had him take over the centre. Ever since then, his source of income has been from teaching kendo lessons. Shinobu thought his earnings were surprisingly high.

Mitsuri was an art student. Her favourite thing to paint? Food. That girl had an appetite that could win competitions.

Tengen majored in theatre. His ambition was to become an internationally famous director who specialised in supernatural neon monkey films. Extravagantly flamboyant, according to him.

Rengoku was studying to be a marching band director. He loved loud booming noises, and being a trumpet player in high school, he discovered a passion for marching bands.

✨HASHIRA✨
@UZUIHEAVEN: Do you all want to hang out 🤩

@smilingmenace: When?

@UZUIHEAVEN: Tonight! Let’s have barbecue.

@UMAI_EATS: LET'S MAKE IT A POTLUCK! 🔥🔥

@pink_strawberry: okay! ill bring the meat! 😁😁

@leave_me_alone: i’ll bring some drinks.

@smilingmenace: I can bring some veggies.

@UMAI_EATS: I’M GOING TO MAKE SOME HOMEMADE SAUCE! IT’S GOING TO BE FANTASTICALLY UMAI!

@UZUI_HEAVEN: In that case, I’ll bake a CAKE! BE READY TO WITNESS MY FLASHYNESS.

@smilingmenace: Please don’t.

@pink_strawberry: i second that.

@leave_me_alone: yo kyo’s place as usual right?

@UMAI_EATS: CORRECT!

@pink_strawberry: yayyyy

@UZUIHEAVEN: Oh yeah, I’m bringing Mui over.

@leave_me_alone: k

Tengen’s step-brother, Muichiro, was a 15-year-old boy. He was forgetful, often relying on his friends to remind him of things. One of those friends was Tanjiro, who just happened to be Shinobu’s younger sister’s boyfriend.

Neither of Shinobu’s family members, including herself, expected Kanao to bring home a boy. Her mother and her elder sister thought of Tanjiro as a cheerful, kind boy. They approved of their relationship fast. Shinobu’s father, on the other hand, took a longer time to tolerate the boy. Not surprising, considering how protective he was of his three precious daughters.

The first time Tengen brought Muichiro over to the gang was when he had to watch over him. The group ended up treating Muichiro as their common little brother.

Shinobu put her phone down as she changed into something casual. She called over to Mitsuri, beckoning her to get into the car. They needed to head to the nearby grocery store to grab food for the night.

⨳

Shinobu was chopping up mushrooms and capsicums into halves. Mitsuri was beside her, sorting through different kinds of meat. Earlier, they had almost emptied the grocery store’s whole counter of meat. Shinobu’s friends ate a lot. Like, A LOT. They never seemed to gain much weight, though.

Besides some vegetables, Shinobu also bought a few packs of gummies for them to share. By a few packs, she meant 15. She wasn’t sure if it would be enough, considering the appetite of her friends.

Something told Shinobu that it was definitely not enough.

⨳

Kyojurou’s residence lay in a wealthy neighbourhood. Entire mansions stood side by side, each of them shining in its own glory. His house was three stories tall, full of large windows and landscaped to perfection. Shinobu’s favourite part of his house was the pool. It was shaped like a curve, with disco lights at its base.

Rengoku’s parents were often abroad with their work, and his younger brother attended a boarding school far away. He usually had the whole house to himself.

After ringing the doorbell, Shinobu and Mitsuri were welcomed in by Tengen in a duck-themed outfit. He wore a yellow duck print shirt, light blue, pool ripple-patterned shorts, and a bright yellow duck cap.

“Fire fit, Tengen!” Mitsuri cheered.

“Why, thank you,” he made a dramatic bow, one hand extended from his side and the other near his waist.

The two made way to his backyard, where the grill and stools were. Shinobu noticed that they were the last ones to arrive. Muichiro was staring at the setting sun, lips murmuring something incoherent. Sanemi and Rengoku were heating up the grill, adding charcoal.

A loud boom made Shinobu jump. Tengen started blasting pop songs over the speakers. “Let’s get this fucking party started!” He let out a “whoo” of excitement.

Plates of skewered meat and veggies were brought out to be grilled. Sanemi popped open a bottle of whiskey and poured shots for everyone except Muichiro. They made sure not to expose the boy to too much alcohol that young.

Rengoku walked out of the kitchen carrying a big white bowl. “MY HOMEMADE SWEET AND SALTY SAUCE!” He grinned at everyone. Shinobu dipped a skewer of mushrooms and capsicums into the sauce. It didn’t take her long before she reached for her glass of whiskey, hoping to get rid of the taste.

Sanemi yelped when he put a dipped-in-sauce skewer in his mouth. “WHAT THE FUCK IS THAT?!” He looked traumatised.

A curious Mitsuri dunked her skewer into the sauce and took a bite. She grimaced and looked towards Rengoku. “Kyo, no offence, but your sauce tastes like a literal pile of salt and sugar.”

“Well, it is named sweet and salty sauce.” Muichiro shrugged, no interest in trying the sauce.

“OFFENCE TAKEN!” Rengoku smiled brightly. He dipped a finger into his sauce and sucked on it. It couldn’t be that bad, right?

Rengoku blinked at them once. Then another time. “Offence… returned.” He said. “Alright! We’ll just skip the sauce!” He set it down on a table.

“Or…” Tengen trailed off. He stood up and scuttled away to the kitchen. A few moments later, he appears with a bowl full of brown sauce. “BARBECUE SAUCE!” He looked extremely proud of himself.

“Are you a magician?” Mitsuri awed.

Sanemi dipped another skewer into the sauce. His eyes lit up in surprise. “This is actually good.” The rest of them followed suit, giving approving comments to the mysterious sauce. Even Muichiro took a taste of it.

“This tastes oddly familiar…” Rengoku trailed off as he bit into his food. “Wait…”

“THIS IS THE LEFTOVER MCDONALD’S BARBECUE SAUCE FROM MY FRIDGE, ISN’T IT!” Rengoku boomed with a wide smile.

“Uhhh…” Tengen gave them a sheepish smile.

Mitsuri gave him a thumbs-up. “That’s actually genius!”

A piece of chicken smacked Tengen in the forehead. “Hey! That was unflashy!” He pointed his now-empty skewer at Sanemi. “Bitch,” the white-haired man rolled his eyes.

“Is this a food fight?” Mitsuri asked excitedly. She squealed.

Shinobu giggled at her friends’ antics.

After they finished the food, Tengen brought out a white cake that he had made. An array of questions and complaints flew out as he placed the cake on the table.

“WHY THE FUCK ARE THERE ROCKS ON YOUR CAKE?!”

Indeed, his cake was decorated with five round rocks forming a circle. A single tall rock stood in the middle of the cake. The frosting on the cake was badly done, too. Some spots were left uncovered, and some had lumps of uneven frosting on them.

“I had no time to buy cake toppers since I baked it this morning, so I used some pebbles from my garden! BUT FRET NOT! I WASHED THEM!” He gave his friends a smug grin, as if expecting applause.

All he got were horrified, speechless expressions staring back at him.

They ended up scraping off the top layer of frosting of the cake, and shared the rest in slices, much to Tengen’s dismay. Muichiro bit into the cake with anticipation, curious about how it would taste despite its ugly appearance.

He went blank for a solid minute.

Not only was the cake decorated with rocks, but it tasted like a rock, too. Cakes were supposed to be soft, weren’t they? Why was this one rock hard?

“Please don’t bake again,” Shinobu told the man.

A torturous moment of swallowing rock cake later, the group changed into swimwear. Whenever they hung out at Rengoku’s house, they made sure to bring swimsuits. His pool was too pretty to leave alone. Plus, he had really cute floaties.

Shinobu lounged on a large duck floatie, a pack of gummy peaches in her hand. They were her favourite kind of gummies.

“Oh, you guys never actually told us how you met your other band members!” Mitsuri directed her question at the three men. Shinobu thought of Accounting Gargoyle– no, Tomioka Giyuu. She wondered what kind of information she could get from her friends.

Tengen made a thinking pose, “The keyboardist is Iguro Obanai. We found him practising alone in the music room once, and we decided to drag him into our band! He’s a herpetology student, unique choice, if you ask me.”

“He’s a bit feisty at first, but he’s a nice guy when you get closer to him,” Sanemi added.

“He gave me a lollipop once,” Muichiro said absentmindedly.

Tengen continued, “The guy who plays the electric guitar, that’s Tomioka Giyuu. He’s an accounting student, 21, I think? We also caught him playing once and banged his door down. I actually dunno if he agreed to join us outta fear or interest.” He shrugged.

“Banged his door down…?”

“Yuh–uh! Didn’t I mention he lives next door?”

“No, you didn’t!” Shinobu made a dramatic scoff. She wasn’t sure what she was expecting to hear from her friend, but it certainly wasn’t the fact that he lived right next door to her friend’s house.

“Well, now you do! He’s single and up for grabs if you’re wondering.” Tengen smirked at her.

“I wasn’t wondering!” Shinobu’s cheeks went red. Oh, she definitely was wondering.

“By your expression, I can tell you were wondering,” the white-haired man sing-songed.

“YO PEOPLE!” Sanemi called out.

“Wanna ding-dong ditch someone?”

“THAT’S A FANTASTIC IDEA!” a loud voice boomed over the music.

And so off they went to annoy a poor, unlucky soul.

Chapter Text

The group of six made their way to the residence next door. Mitsuri happily chewed on her gummy worms as she walked. “These things are real good. Who invented them?” munch

“Alrighty, let’s get behind those bushes!” Tengen grinned, pointing to rows of flower bushes next to the front door of Giyuu’s house. The gateless structure of their neighbourhood made for easy entrance to a neighbour's home. It may have been viewed as unsafe, but Shinobu was glad it was designed that way. She did not fancy climbing over gates and fences.

His home was quite lavish in Shinobu’s opinion. From the large glass windows above the front door, she spotted a huge chandelier hanging from a ceiling two floors high. However, a weirdly expansive collection of garden gnomes in his front garden was a surprising sight for her. She didn’t take him for a garden gnome enthusiast.

It appears that there were several unexpected facts about the man.

The group split into two, three on each side of the front gate. They knelt behind the bushes for cover, Tengen having to lie flat on the grass due to his tall nature. Kyojurou, being next to Mitsuri, opened his mouth wide. The girl shoved three gummy worms in his mouth.

“How about we take turns ringing the doorbell? Loser jumps into a box of Legos.” Sanemi proposed.

“That’s cruel,” Rengoku said.

“How flashy!” Tengen stated from the ground. Why he chose to lie face down? Nobody knows.

“How’s the grass taste?” Sanemi snorted.

“Surprisingly fresh! Tomioka must care deeply for his grass!” Tengen gave a proud thumbs up, head still facing downwards.

“Why the fuck are you eating his grass?!”

“Why is he even eating grass?!”

“What are we doing here again…” Muichiro mumbled, staring intently at a rock on the pavement. Mitsuri sighed and filled him in again.

Rengoku flapped both his arms, garnering the attention of all present. “I’ll go first!” The five nodded and watched the fiery-haired man walk up to the front door. He jabbed the doorbell hard and ran back to his spot behind the bushes. His footsteps were surprisingly quiet for his bulky frame.

A long moment of waiting in silence passed. A moment too long to be natural. Mitsuri peeked her head out from the bushes. “Is he not at home? It’s been so long…” She questioned.

“Maybe he didn’t hear it?” Shinobu responded.

“Let’s ring again then! Alrighty, who’s next?” Rengoku grinned.

“I wanna go!” Mitsuri cheered. She left the empty bag of gummy worms in Muichiro’s hands and stood up. Smoothing out her shorts as she walked up the steps, she eventually reached the door and pressed the doorbell.

Mitsuri ran down the steps and jumped behind the bush. She covered her mouth to muffle her giggles. The door opened not long after. None of them dared to poke their heads up in fear of him noticing them.

Seemingly seeing the area empty, the owner of the house closed the door. The group of six let out a breath and burst out in laughter, Shinobu included. In her nineteen years of living, never had she gone ding-dong-ditching. The thrill of it was exciting.

“Never an outing quite like ding-dong ditching! Wait– that rhymed!” Tengen grinned from ear to ear. He was now sitting up on the grass. “I’ll go next! Watch me put on a flamboyant show!”

“Break a leg!” Sanemi pumped his fist.

“I think he meant that literally,” Mitsuri whispered to Muichiro.

Tengen made his way up to the door. After ringing the doorbell, he proceeded to do a backflip and– huh? Shinobu wasn’t sure if she saw that right. The man was twerking. Just what was his idea of flamboyant?

After he ended his so-called ‘flamboyant performance’, he jumped back onto the grass behind the bush and lay flat on the ground. A mere two seconds later, they heard the sounds of the door opening.

The door seemed to linger in that open position for a while longer than the last. Nevertheless, it closed back after a while. Six heads poked up from behind the bushes.

They burst out laughing again.

“I never knew you could twerk!” Rengoku fired a remark at Tengen, who held a smug grin.

“As you should know, my flamboyance is otherworldly!” He puffed out his chest.

“Teach me how,” Muichiro said in a flat voice. He looked genuinely interested in learning how to twerk.

“Uhm… maybe learn something else, Mui?” Mitsuri awkwardly smiled at the younger boy.

Tengen, however, seemed to be overjoyed that someone wanted to learn his flashy techniques. “Very well, young one! I shall accept you as my disciple!”

“He’s deluded…” Shinobu mumbled.

“Okay, who’s next?” Sanemi asked.

“How bout yourself, Sanemi?” Shinobu asked him.

The man clicked his tongue. “The later you go, the higher the risk. And so, I shall be the last!” He declared. “Shinobu, why don’t you go?”

“Kay.” She got up from the grass and headed for his door. She sucked in a breath as her finger hovered over the doorbell button. As long as she made a quick run for it, she wouldn’t get caught.

Her finger pushed the button. She turned around to run back to her spot, but stumbled backwards. She had almost stepped on an earthworm crawling over the pavement.

Shinobu let out a faint yelp as she retracted her right leg about to land on the worm. She would not fancy the sight of a squirming worm beneath her shoe at all. Letting out a sigh of relief, she found her footing and was about to step over the worm when she heard a click.

The door behind her opened. Shinobu froze.

A warm light shone from behind her. Shinobu stared at her own shadow illuminated by the light beyond the door. She wondered whether or not to turn around. Considering it rather rude to have her back facing someone in front of their home, she clenched her fists and turned around.

Shinobu was met with a broad, muscular chest.

She would never admit it, but Shinobu had a weakness for abs. Her eyes trailed downwards, out of shame or curiosity, she didn’t know. Under the toned muscles was a pair of dark blue swim trunks.

The swim trunks bore traces of water. His chest had tiny water beads on it, too. Had he just gone for a swim?

She shook herself back to her senses. “It's rude to stare!” Shinobu scolded herself mentally. Mustering up her courage, Shinobu tilted her head up to meet the man.

Emotionless, deep blue eyes stared back at her. However, there seemed to be a hint of curiosity in those eyes. A few strands of wet hair clung to his face. Shinobu felt her cheeks heat up.

She also had a weakness for wet hair.

“Kochou?” Shinobu opened her mouth to reply, but no words came out. She had expected the outcome of her losing, but not one with him shirtless and wet. It targeted her heart right on the bullseye.

“HYAH! Shinobu lost!” A gleeful Tengen jumped out of the bush.

Shinobu thanked the gods for his intervention.

The remaining four got out of the bushes after Tengen did. Giyuu’s expressionless face shifted to one of slight confusion.

Tengen, seemingly just noticing the man behind Shinobu, greeted, “Oh, hey Tomioka! Why are you shirtless?” His tone was as if they weren’t playing with his doorbell just moments before.

“I was swimming,” he replied curtly.

Tengen placed both of his hands on Shinobu’s shoulders— or rather, slammed them on. He gave Giyuu a wide grin. “Our dear Shinobu has caused you great annoyance, hasn’t she? Her punishment will be carried out accordingly.” Tengen remained in an overly sweet tone.

“Hey!” Shinobu grumbled. Due to her short build and Tengen’s taller-than-average one, the two looked like a father bringing his grumpy child to a daycare centre.

Tengen ignored Shinobu’s protests. “Would you like to witness her punishment?” The white-haired man grinned like a Cheshire cat.

For some reason unknown to Shinobu, Giyuu accepted Tengen’s ‘generous’ offer.

Chapter Text

They made their way back next door to Rengoku’s house, this time with the emotionless Tomioka Giyuu in tow.

“Where are we even supposed to get a tub of Legos now?” Tengen asked.

“I can just smash up my Millennium Falcon!” Rengoku looked too happy to be talking about breaking apart one of his favourite Lego sets.

Surprised “Huh”s and “What”s flew at him.

Rengoku’s smile only widened. “I LOVE REBUILDING MY SETS!”

⨳

“HYAHH!” Rengoku threw his beloved Millennium Falcon into a big tub. He then proceeded to use his water bottle to smash the clumps into smaller pieces. After he was satisfied with his work, he gave the rest a wide smile.

“I’ve never seen someone so happy destroying their Lego sets,” Sanemi looked speechless.

“Well then, Shinobu, time to get flashy!” Tengen motioned for her to jump into the tub.

“On second thought, maybe jumping into Legos is a bit extreme…” Sanemi said awkwardly.

“Oh shut up, you just don't want her sister to hate you!” Tengen huffed.

“What do you mean by that?!” Sanemi scoffed.

“Uhm… maybe Legos is a bit cruel?” Mitsuri spoke up.

Tengen groaned. “Not you too, Mits!”

“It does seem a bit extra…” Rengoku agreed.

Sanemi let out a breath. “See! They get it! You can’t possibly do that to a lady.”

“Nuh-uh! A Kochou stays true to their bets!” Shinobu declared, intent on taking her punishment for losing—damned earthworm. She glanced at Sanemi. “And how chivalrous of you.”

Sanemi fumbled with his words.

Tengen called out to Muichiro, “Oi, whadya think of Shinobu’s punishment?” It had somehow turned into a vote of whether or not she would jump.

“Huh? Uh, whatever she said.” Muichiro, obviously not listening to their conversation, pointed towards Shinobu, who was standing next to him.

“Fuck! We have a tie!”

“Tomioka, make your supreme judgement.” Tengen tipped an imaginary hat towards the black-haired man.

Giyuu, put on the spot, was at a loss for what he should do. Letting someone jump into a tub of pain would be merciless, yet not letting her jump felt like violating her own choices.

“No jumping,” He decided.

His words were met with mixed reactions. Tengen, overruled, groaned like a child denied candy. In fact, he looked on the verge of tears. Moments later, he brightened up as if he had a brilliant idea.

“Well, since Shinobu won’t jump, someone else oughta do it! Sanemi! Let’s test out that chivalry!”

“What?!” A flustered Sanemi leapt up from his seat.

Tengen shrugged. “It’s only fair.”

The seven ended up fighting over who would jump into the tub. Everyone pinned the blame on someone. Except Giyuu, that is. He didn’t want to get tangled up in a cat fight. Said cats suddenly quieted down when Mitsuri fell silent— too silent.

The pink-haired girl stared long and hard at her phone. Her lips were pursed, her fist slowly clenching and unclenching.

“Mitsuri, what’s up…?” Shinobu asked.

Mitsuri passed her phone to Shinobu. When the latter took the phone from her hands, she felt her blood begin to boil. That bastard pig wanted to get back together with her friend.

Tengen, curious, took the phone from Shinobu and viewed the text messages on it with the few sitting next to him. He made a disgusted face when he finished reading. Sanemi gagged.

“Dating 101, never date a man who only texts you at night!” He handed the phone back to Mitsuri, nodding matter-of-factly.

“Man ain't even love ya, he’s just horny.” Sanemi snorted. Shinobu thought his words of comfort were not so comforting.

Shinobu squeezed her friend’s arm. “Think about it, Mitsuri. He’s fat, ugly, and a momma’s boy. You’ll find better!”

“A totally unflashy individual indeed!” Tengen agreed.

“I recommend you block that man and delete his number!” Rengoku cheered.

Mitsuri gave an awkward smile. “But… I don’t know…” She hesitated. No matter how bad a person he was, they still dated for two years. It felt ike throwing away all those rare times that she did feel happy.

Tengen sighed. He picked up Mitsuri’s phone once more, texted something in and blocked the number. He then deleted the contact from her phone and set it down on the sofa. “There, all done!” He grinned.

Mitsuri laughed awkwardly. She wasn’t sure how to feel, but she was a bit happy seeing that her friends cared for her well-being. Moreover, she wasn’t sure she’d be able to block the number herself.

Rengoku brought out a giant bottle of vodka from his kitchen. He placed the bottle on the coffee table along with glasses stacked atop each other. Looking at Muichiro, he scurried back to the kitchen and got a can of beer. He handed it to Muichiro with an innocent smile.

“Drink your problems away, Mitsuri!”

Muichiro popped open his can of beer and took a big gulp. He grimaced after swallowing it, yet went for another gulp anyway.

“He’s underage!” Shinobu shot a glare at Rengoku. Who gives a whole can of beer to a fifteen-year-old?

“Would you rather he have vodka?” Sanemi shrugged.

Shinobu opened her mouth to retort, but she was cut back by someone sitting to her left. That someone was none other than Giyuu, whose presence was almost forgotten by Shinobu.

“Says the lightweight,” Giyuu said to Sanemi with his usual expressionless face.

“Fuck you.” Sanemi gave him two middle fingers, plus one from his toes.

“How do you manage that…” Mitsuri asked.

“Grovel at my feet and they’ll tell you.”

“Get out.” Mitsuri cringed.

While they bickered like children, the rest started their drinking session for the night. Shinobu watched as Muichiro asked Rengoku for a second bottle, the first already gone. They were really bad influences for a teen. Although maybe it wouldn’t be too bad to help him build an alcohol tolerance, right?

Sanemi, after his third shot, was spreading wide on the floor, making imaginary snow angels. As tough as he may usually look, he wasn’t the best at holding his liquor. Tengen was snickering while filming his friend. No doubt he was going to post it on his social media.

Giyuu didn’t seem to be drinking much. It made Shinobu curious. Was he also a lightweight, or did he just dislike drinking? Or maybe he’s already drunk and was pretending his best to look unaffected.

Shinobu wanted to ask him, but she didn’t want to come off as intrusive.

When the group chatted, Giyuu would also join in on topics. Shinobu didn’t expect him to talk as much as he did. It was the most words she had ever heard come from his lips. “So you are capable of human interaction…” She mumbled to herself.

Their little gathering ended around one in the morning. After a quick, hot water shower, Shinobu fell flat on her bed and dozed off. The alcohol was getting to her head.

That night, Shinobu dreamt of a glistening chest and piercing, deep blue eyes.

Chapter Text

“Shinobu, you know Rengoku’s birthday is coming up, right?” Mitsuri asked. The two were watching a K-drama on the couch, snuggled up in blankets and— unicorn pyjamas? Mitsuri had a giant tub of sea-salt flavoured popcorn in her arms.

“Yeah…” Shinobu’s attention was solely on the TV. The main characters were about to kiss; who could blame her?

“Let’s plan a surprise party!”

“Okay…” Mitsuri gave her a deadpan expression after Shinobu’s lack-of-emotion response.

Mitsuri got up from her relaxed position and jumped to Shinobu’s side, both her hands violently shaking the other’s shoulders. “Are you listening?!” Mitsuri let out a noise that sounded like a mix of a yowl and a growl.

“I am!” Shinobu tried to loosen Mitsuri’s grip. That girl was strong.

“No, you aren’t!”

“Repeat what you said!” Shinobu looked on the verge of fainting from the intense shaking.

“I said, let’s plan a surprise birthday party for Rengoku!” Mitsuri placed her hands at her waist and gave her friend a “hmph”.

Shinobu nodded. “Okay!”

The pink-haired girl brightened up hearing an actual reply. She gave Shinobu a wide smile. “I’ll make a group chat to discuss!”

⨳

Kyo’s Bday Party 🎉🎊
@pink_strawberry added 5 people

@pink strawberry: this group is to plan kyos bday party 😛

@leave_me_alone: why is @squirtlegun in here

@UZUIHEAVEN: Why not?

@smilingmenace: Who’s @squirtlegun.

@leave_me_alone: giyuu

@smiling menace: Oh.

@smilingmenace: Huh?

@pink_strawberry: yo what say we put shinobu and tomioka in charge of this plan

@pink_strawberry: ngl theyre the only responsible adults in here lmao 😌

@UZUIHEAVEN: Oi what am I?

@leave_me_alone: wdym im not responsible :(

@UZUIHEAVEN: Mits you didn’t accidentally add Kanae in here did you?

@pink_strawberry: you want me to? 😉

@squirtlegun: who’s kanae

@UZUIHEAVEN: Shinobu’s elder sister and Sanemi’s little crush.

@leave_me_alone: bitch leave me alone ion like her

@smilingmenace: Please leave Kanae alone. 😄

@UZUIHEAVEN: We love overprotective Shinobu.

@forgotmypassword: whats this group?

@pink_strawberry: it’s to plan kyo’s surprise bday partyyy

@UZUIHEAVEN: Where’s the venue?

@pink_strawberry: @squirtlegun @smilingmenace

@squirtlegun: what?

@smilingmenace: Bruh.

@pink_strawberry: let’s have a mcdonalds party!!!

@UZUIHEAVEN: THAT’S GENIUS MITS

@leave_me_alone: omg i js had a fucking nuclear bomb of a shit

@UZUIHEAVEN: Pic

@pink_strawberry: ew no 🦵🏻💥

@forgotmypassword: cool

@leave_me_alone: aint nun cool here kiddo

@pink_strawberry: I WANT ICE CREAAAM

@UZUIHEAVEN: YO LET’S GO GRAB SUM

@leave_me_alone: fr?

@smilingmenace: So McDonalds? Right?

@pink_strawberry: CHOC CHIP IM OMW

@UZUIHEAVEN: LET’S FUCKING ROLL

@forgotmypassword: can i come along

@UZUIHEAVEN: Sure kiddo.

@smilingmenace: Guys?

@leave_me_alone: cookies n cream on top 🔛🔝

@UZUIHEAVEN: Let’s go to that parlour near Starbucks. IT HAS POP ROCK TOPPINGS

@pink_strawberry: OEMGEEEEEE

@smilingmenace: Guys??

@UZUIHEAVEN: Oh guys for Kyojurou’s birthday cake

@smilingmenace: Yes finally

@UZUIHEAVEN: I bestow upon Shinobu and Tomioka the honour of getting a cake!

@smilingmenace: What?

@squirtlegun: why me

@UZUIHEAVEN: Cuz you two are the most unlikely people to eat it on the way.

@leave_me_alone: that i agree.

@forgotmypassword: yo tengen when r u picking me up. i want that ice cream.

@UZUIHEAVEN: Get changed. Im omw

@pink_strawberry: pick me and nobu up tooo

@UZUIHEAVEN: K

@leave_me_alone: send me the directions. im going

@UZUIHEAVEN: 🖇️sent a link

@UZUIHEAVEN: Yo Tomioka you coming right

@squirtlegun: ok

Shinobu put her phone down and got a change of clothes. She wasn’t really in the mood for ice cream, but she wouldn’t miss out on a group hangout. Plus, a tiny part of her was motivated by a certain someone who would be there.

An image of his shirtless body popped into her mind. She felt a warmth crawl up her cheeks. It was an image that would be hard to forget— not like she wanted to forget it, of course.

Shinobu prided herself on being a prim and proper lady, but she couldn’t deny that man was a feast for the eyes, maybe one for the lips too— Shinobu replaced her thoughts with twerking unicorns, trying to forget about the not-so-proper ones.

⨳

A huge glass of ice cream sundae was placed in the middle of the table. Seriously, it was huge. Shinobu was sure it was at least half her height. The appetite of her friends sometimes creeped her out.

Mitsuri squealed when she saw the glass. She snapped a photo of it before picking a cherry off the top and throwing it in her mouth. Tengen filmed a dramatic video of the glass from top to bottom, labelling it as “too flashy not to post”

One good thing about having big appetite friends is that every food post is sure to be amazing. Today’s would make the highlight of the week. After some sudden planning, the group of seven were seated in a bubblegum-themed ice cream parlour.

“Kyojurou is so missing out,” Sanemi stated, scooping part of the sundae onto his plate.

“Well, ya can’t have him here if we’re talking ‘bout his surprise party.” Tengen shrugged.

“I’ll try and book a reservation for a McDonald’s birthday party. I’m not sure if they host it for adults…” Shinobu trailed off.

“Well, you do that!” Tengen cheered.

Shinobu brightened up. It felt like they were finally getting somewhere with the planning. “How about the cake? What flavour shall we go for?”

“Oh my god, y'all remember the golden leaf sushi I tried that time? WE SHOULD MAKE A GOLDEN CAKE!” Tengen had his jaw dropped as if he had just found the cure for cancer.

“LET’S FUCKING MAKE IT CHILI FLAVOURED!” Sanemi yelled. His loud voice got a few judgmental stares from the other customers in the parlour.

“Yo, why’s that actually kinda fire?” Mitsuri nodded enthusiastically.

“Can we use fireworks for candles?” Muichiro asked, tilting his head slightly to the right.

Fifteen minutes later, the conversation had strayed from cake flavours to explosive glitter-filled gummy bears. Shinobu groaned. Their discussion had yielded close to no results.

Her eyes spotted her phone on the table. An idea came to her head. With a sigh and a slight roll of her eyes, she leaned forward and picked it up. Scrolling past their recently formed group chat, she arrived at a contact she’d just added.

She typed a quick message.

@smilingmenace: It seems our team has been completely compromised by sugar and glitter. We’re on our own.

Across the table, there was a soft buzz.

Giyuu, who had been silently observing the chaos with his usual detached face, stuck his hand inside his pocket to retrieve his phone. He looked at the screen, eyebrows raising almost imperceptibly. Slow fingers moved to type out a message.

@squirtlegun: I’ve noticed.

Shinobu unknowingly sucked in a breath. The corners of her lips tugged up slightly. He actually responded.

@smilingmenace: So. Cake. I’m vetoing anything made from golden leaves. That’s just inedible.

@squirtlegun: ok.

@smilingmenace: And Rengoku would want something big enough to feed a small army.

@squirtlegun: chocolate

@smilingmenace: Obvi. But we can’t just get some grocery store cake. Tengen would physically break down.

@squirtlegun: There’s a place. It’s on 4th street.

Shinobu blinked at her screen. That was… unexpectedly helpful.

@smilingmenace: And they sell big yummy chocolate cakes?

@squirtlegun: They accept any requests. choc’s good.

@smilingmenace: Then it’s settled. Send me the location, I’ll go take a look.

She watched him. He stared at his phone and gave a tiny nod to himself. A moment later, her phone buzzed.

@squirtlegun: 🖇️sent a link

@smilingmenace: Perfect. See? We’re a more efficient team than all of them combined.

@squirtlegun: yeah.

Shinobu looked up from her phone and cleared her throat loudly. “Everyone!” she announced, disrupting Tengen’s endless monologue. “The Cake Committee has reached a final verdict! We have found a place!”

“Is it golden chilli cake with exploding glittery gummy bears and mayonnaise frosting?” Tengen looked at her, full of hope.

Shinobu deadpanned. “Nope.”

“How utterly unflashy!” He shook his head.

Shinobu just smirked, catching Giyuu’s eyes for a brief moment across the table. He held her gaze for a moment, then looked away. But not before Shinobu caught a faint shrug of his shoulders, as if to say, ‘My work here is done’

It was the most productive and strangely pleasant conversation they ever had.

Chapter Text

Shinobu was completely spent from running around the whole day. Her lectures took up the earlier part of her day. After a late lunch, she went to the bakery recommended by Giyuu to try out their chocolate cake. Turns out, Giyuu had a good taste for desserts. The bakery’s moist chocolate had Shinobu completely hooked.

After deeming the bakery dependable, she put in a special request for an extra-large, triple-layered chocolate cake. She noted them to top it with marshmallows and cherries, plus a bunch of Pop Rocks.

When her cake mission was completed, she drove to a McDonald's nearby to inquire about their birthday party reservation. The staff had thought Shinobu was planning a party for her child— did she look that old? When she told them it was for a friend, the staff looked stunned.

Nevertheless, they did agree to hold a birthday party. Shinobu made a mental note to compile a list of guests to invite. She also had to find out what each guest preferred for their meals, since she needed to tell the restaurant staff in advance.

Done with her task of reserving a party, she hopped into her car and drove to the Kochou’s main house. Earlier that day, her mother had called her over for dinner. Apparently, her younger sister, Kanao, a soon-to-be sixteen-year-old, was bringing her boyfriend, Kamado Tanjiro, over.

Shinobu definitely wouldn’t let go of the chance to bask in the sweet energy of teenage love, plus she would get the chance to tease her younger sister. Although she did admit she felt a little left out in a way.

Both her elder and younger sisters had dated others before, yet she stood all single and alone. According to articles she’d read before, love feels different for everyone. It’s not necessarily getting butterflies or so. These days, she often wondered what love would feel like for her.

Thus, Shinobu decided to set a side quest for herself: develop ‘love’ for someone.

Arriving at her family home, Shinobu got out of the car and stretched her back. She entered the PIN code to the front door and unlocked it. Once inside, she was met with multiple voices screaming.

Shook by the still ongoing screams, Shinobu stood still on the doormat, unsure whether to enter. She slowly walked to the kitchen, where the voices came from. Nearing the edge of a wall, she was about to enter the kitchen area when a ghost jumped at her.

Shinobu screamed in a very un-Shinobu-like way. The ghost screamed back.

Then, when Shinobu calmed down, her breath still heavy and ragged, the ghost gave her a wide grin. Shinobu wanted to scream again. Seeing her terrified face, the ghost greeted her, “Hi, sister Shinobu, it’s me, Tanjiro!”

Shinobu blinked at him and took a step back. That was when she realised the thing in front of her was none other than Kamado Tanjiro. She let out a sigh of relief. The boy had what looked like flour caked on his face and hair. On his arms were splatters of…egg?

“What is going on?” She asked him.

Tanjiro smiled sheepishly. “I was helping Kanao, sister Kanae, and Mrs Kochou cook. But we accidentally knocked each other over, and I fell straight into a bowl of flour.”

“Oh.” Shinobu didn’t know what to say. She smiled subtly at Tanjiro, “Get yourself cleaned up.” Tanjiro gave her one of his signature wide grins and walked off to the bathroom.

Shinobu stepped into the kitchen— or what it was supposed to be. There was flour everywhere, multiple eggs broken on the ground, and a bunch of vegetables lying there as well. Near the edge of the kitchen counter were shards of broken glass from a shattered condiment bottle.

Kanae, having noticed Shinobu, lit up with joy. “Shi-no-bu!” She was about to walk over to where Shinobu stood, but frowned at the floor covered with flour, eggs, and glass.

“I’ll help clean,” Shinobu said. She wiped up the flour on the ground with a cloth, scooping up eggs with her hands. After a wipe of the cloth, she ran it under water to wash away the mess.

During one of those cloth washes, she failed to notice a glass shard she swept up together with the flour. While wringing the cloth out, said shard cut into her finger, drawing blood immediately.

“Ow!”

Her mother and sisters immediately looked over. Mrs Kochou sighed, “Shinobu, you have to be careful. I’ll get you a band-aid.” Shinobu shook her head, “It’s okay, mum, I’ll get it myself.”

“Be careful, Shinobu!” Kanae told her.

Shinobu went to the bathroom and rinsed her wound again before grabbing the box of bandages from the compartment above. She peeled the paper off one of the bandages and stuck it onto her finger. It didn’t take long before red started showing up on the cotton.

After handling her cut, Shinobu went back to the kitchen, where they started preparing the night’s dinner.

An hour later, the family settled down around the dining table. Tanjiro had slotted himself into the seat next to Shinobu’s father, much to the latter’s dismay. Tanjiro had yet to earn his full approval, but Shinobu was sure he would get there.

“So, how are your studies, Tanjiro?” Mrs Kochou asked. She was very curious about the boy, as he was the first partner to be brought home by one of her girls. To her knowledge, her eldest, Kanae, used to have a boyfriend, but they broke up due to him being too controlling. Her middle child, Shinobu, hadn’t dated a single soul.

“I’m doing very well, Mrs Kochou!” Tanjiro responded, cheerful as always.

Mrs Kochou chuckled. “To think my youngest would be the first to bring a boy home…” She sighed longingly in a dramatic way. Both Shinobu and Kanae were quick to retort with a “Mum…”

“Well, they don’t need to! They’ll do just fine under their father’s wing!” Mr Kochou declared. He loved spoiling his daughters. Naturally, it meant he was more overprotective of them, too.

“Mr Kochou, I promise to take good care of your daughter!” Tanjiro said confidently. Kanao, sitting next to him, blushed slightly.

“I didn’t ask you to talk, boy!” Mr Kochou let out a “hmph”

“I’m terribly sorry!” Tanjiro bowed as low as he could without his forehead hitting the bowl.

“Alright, alright. Don’t be too harsh on him, dear.” Mrs Kochou frowned at her husband. She turned towards Tanjiro with a cheeky smile. “He may seem harsh, but I can tell you he cries at night, saying, ‘My dear daughters are growing up too fast’. I get so bored listening to his sniffles.”

Her words brought a chuckle from everyone. Everyone except Mr Kochou. He dramatically scoffed, “Excuse you, I do not!”

“Sure, sure.” His wife laughed.

Their family dinner wrapped up at a little past seven. Shinobu felt her stomach as she plopped onto the couch. She was bloated, uncomfortably so. Kanao and Tanjiro were playing UNO a bit further away from her. Kanae had gone up to her room. Her parents were freshening up.

Having nothing to do, Shinobu decided to go for a walk and help her digestion. After informing Kanao of her intentions, she grabbed her phone, a leftover loaf of bread, and left the house. She made her way to the park right outside her neighbourhood.

Shinobu switched up her Spotify and played one of her favourite songs through her earphones. She walked along the pavement of the park, swinging the bag of bread in her arms. Ever since she was little, she loved feeding the fish in ponds or lakes. Watching the fish gobble up the bread was an interesting sight to her.

Nearing a spot where there were usually a lot of fish, Shinobu felt her smile growing. She started to open the bag of bread, untwisting the knot in it, when she noticed someone sitting on the bench next to her feeding spot.

The person had their head hung low, fingers strumming on their acoustic guitar. Curious, Shinobu walked closer to the bench to see who it was. Sensing her presence, the person looked up. His eyes seemed to widen ever so slightly when he saw her.

It was none other than Tomioka Giyuu.

Shinobu hadn’t expected him to be here. It wasn’t close to where he stayed. In fact, it was a whole twenty-minute drive just to get to this park. Nonetheless, she still greeted him. “Hello, Tomioka.”

“Hello.” He stared at her, not knowing what to say.

“What are you doing here? It’s not close to your home.” Shinobu asked, stealing a bite from the bread meant for the fish. She mentally apologised for giving in to the irresistible smell of yummy bread.

“I like exploring parks. I came here once, and this kitten wouldn’t leave me alone. Now I come to feed it.” The corner of his lips tugged up faintly. His tone almost sounded enthusiastic to Shinobu. Her gaze went to the black bundle curled up close to him. She hadn’t noticed it until now.

The black bundle slowly unfurled itself. It sat on the bench, blue eyes staring right at Shinobu. Its head was tilted ever so slightly, as if curious about her presence. “Can I… sit with you?” Shinobu asked him. Giyuu gave her a tiny nod.

Shinobu pursed her lips as she sat on the bench slowly. The kitten followed her gaze. Shinobu gulped. She wasn’t particularly fond of furry animals. Truth be told, they scared her a little.

Once she settled on the bench, the kitten got up and crawled towards her. Shinobu tensed up. In her mind, she was repeatedly wishing the cat wouldn’t bite her. The kitten moved over near Shinobu’s injured hand and sniffed her bloodied band-aid.

Shinobu clenched her uninjured fist, praying that it wouldn’t chow down on her finger. Luckily, her prayers were answered. Well, in a way it was. The kitten crawled onto her lap and curled up right there.

Shinobu was scared out of her mind. The kitten gave her a soft ‘meow’ and closed its eyes.

Next to her, Giyuu watched their interaction. He didn’t know she was scared of cats. After some thoughtful consideration, he decided to open his mouth and talk to her.

“You’re injured.” He stated. It felt weird to him that he was starting a conversation.

Shinobu looked shocked, hearing him talk. “Uh… I got cut by glass.”

The man gave her a slight nod. He didn’t know what to say anymore after that attempt.

Shinobu cleared her throat. “So, umm, does the cat have a name?”

“Bartholomew”

Shinobu couldn’t control her laughter. The way he said it in such a serious tone made the name he gave ten times funnier. “What a classy name.” She said between her laughs.

“I suppose it is.” Shinobu didn’t miss the tiny smile that formed on his lips. The sight made her own grow larger.

“The kitten looks like you,” Shinobu said without much thought. When she didn’t get a response from the man beside her, she turned towards him and started to panic. “Uh– I meant the black fur, and the– uh blue eyes, you know?”

Giyuu only stared at her with his usual plain expression, the only difference being his very, very slightly raised brows. “Yeah.”

Shinobu looked back down to her lap, where the black kitten lay. “Why don’t you bring it home?”

“I’m not sure whether or not it has family here.”

Shinobu nodded. She suddenly remembered her initial purpose for being in the park in the first place. “I was supposed to feed the fish.” She pouted. With the cat on her lap, she didn’t dare to get up. “But now I can’t get up.”

“Pick him up. Bartholomew doesn’t bite.” Giyuu told her.

Shinobu looked at him with a guilty expression. Furry animals just got to her in a way.

Giyuu, taking note of her evident fear of the animal, reached out his hands. “May I?”

Shinobu nodded, grateful for his help. Having gotten the green light, Giyuu slid his hands around the tiny kitten, careful not to touch the skin of Shinobu’s thighs. The animal, however, did not seem to want to leave its spot. It tried twisting out of Giyuu’s hands.

The uncooperative kitten made Giyuu’s mission of not touching her skin difficult. Though successful in carrying the kitten, he had grazed her bare thighs with his knuckles. Shinobu involuntarily clenched her thighs.

“Sorry,” he muttered.

“It’s okay.” Shinobu reached for her bread, trying to ignore her pounding heart. She took a slice out and handed it to Giyuu. “Would you like one?” He nodded.

Shifting the kitten to be cradled in one of his arms, he took the slice of bread from Shinobu. He bit on a corner of the bread, then used his free hand to peel tiny chunks. He threw those chunks into the lake, watching the fish swallow them.

Shinobu followed suit, watching the fish eat her chunks of bread with a smile on her face. Fish feeding with Tomioka Giyuu was a really unexpected part of her day. But really, what can be expected when it comes to him?

Shinobu noticed how Giyuu watched Bartholomew with absolute tenderness in his eyes. From his usual emotionless personality, she wouldn’t expect him to be a cat lover. To repeatedly drive a long distance just to feed that cat made Shinobu feel warm inside.

Tomioka Giyuu never fails to surprise.

When they had used up the last of the bread, they bid each other goodbye. Shinobu watched as he settled the kitten down on the bench. It let out a longing ‘meow’ that squeezed Shinobu’s heart.

That night, after she had gone back to her family home, Shinobu researched cat behaviours in detail.

Chapter Text

In the afternoon of the day after, Shinobu sat around a cafe table together with her two sisters. It was the same cafe from the time she bumped into Giyuu. The one with a booming variety of desserts.

Shinobu slowly snacked on her slice of strawberry cake while the three caught up with each other. For a moment, Kanae looked deep in thought, her brows furrowed. “So, Shinobu, how’s Sanemi? Still teaching Kendo?” She asked nervously.

Shinobu narrowed her eyes at her with a smug, wicked grin. “Why don’t you ask him yourself? I’m sure he can offer some…private lessons.” She winked at Kanae. Next to her, Kanao let out a cough which soundly oddly like a muffled laugh.

Kanae was suddenly very interested in her pastry, eyes glued onto it. A faint pinkish hue coloured her face. “That’s not necessary.”

“Oh, I think it is. He asked about you the other day, you know. Well, he grunted, 'How's your sister?' which, from him, is a five-act play." Once, Sanemi had driven Shinobu back to her family home after a late-night gathering. A worried Kanae had been waiting near the porch for Shinobu to return.

That was when Sanemi started to develop a tiny crush on her elder sister. He never would admit it when asked by other people, yet there were times when his feelings were so obvious that it would be hard to miss by those around them.

Whenever someone brought up Kanae, Sanemi would go awfully quiet and listen with his ears perked up. He hoped to pick up tiny details and facts about her. Shinobu would treat it as a fun little game to tease the man. She would purposely mention things like, “Oh, Kanae met someone interesting at her flower arrangement class.” Sanemi would have a silent crisis for the next few days.

A while back, Shinobu and Kanae were at another cafe for lunch. Shinobu had sent a picture of the two eating to their group chat. Not long later, Sanemi showed up in that cafe, a total ‘chance encounter’, according to him.

That chance encounter led Sanemi and Kanae to have a small chat while eating. Shinobu had to endure being the third wheel as she ate. It creeped her out a little that Sanemi was an entirely different person when it came to Kanae. He didn’t curse, listened with full attention whenever the girl spoke, and acted so gentlemanly.

His ‘gentle’ nature apparently grew on Kanae. She thought Sanemi was a funny and kind guy. They even exchanged numbers that day. Though Shinobu doubts they said much to each other. Her sister was too shy when it came to men. Sanemi was scared of messing up.

Kanao spoke up in an innocent tone, “Didn’t he gift you a cactus once?”

“Kanao!” Kanae blushed deeper.

Shinobu shrugged. “He’s trying, in his own emotionally stunned way. You should put him out of his misery and just say yes to coffee.”

“I’ll think about it…”

A buzz brought Shinobu’s attention to her phone. She fetched it up from the table. A smile came to her face when she saw the messages. Speak of the devil…

✨HASHIRA✨
@leave_me_alone: 🖇️sent an attachment

@leave_me_alone: this movie is ass. dont watch.

@pink_strawberry: omg i js bought a ticket 😭

@UZUIHEAVEN: 🖇️sent an attachment

@UZUIHEAVEN: Yo I just bought fireworks for Rengoku’s birthday cake.

@leave_me_alone: dumb ass motherfucker RENGOKU’S IN THIS GROUP

@pink_strawberry: delete the msg quick quick

@UZUIHEAVEN: OH FUCK

@UZUIHEAVEN deleted a message

@smilingmenace: Please don’t commit arson.

@UZUIHEAVEN: They’re just fireworks dw.

@leave_me_alone: ARE YOU FUCKING STUPID OMFG

@UZUIHEAVEN: OH SHIT.

@UZUIHEAVEN deleted a message

@leave_me_alone: fucking dumbass

@leave_me_alone: and you wanna call yourself a responsible adult

@leave_me_alone: if you set the place on fire im leaving

@leave_alone: im not fucking paying for fuckass damaged property

Shinobu, wanting to stop his string of incessant cursing, snapped a picture of Kanae and sent it to the group. She smiled to herself, feeling proud.

@smilingmenace: 🖇️sent an attachment. What a nice afternoon. :)

Much to her expectations, Sanemi went completely silent. She scrolled out from the group chat page, planning to set down her phone. Before closing the app, her eyes fell on one contact.

Shinobu hesitated for a moment. Then, acting on impulse, she typed in a message to the contact.

@smilingmenace: Has Mr Bartholomew been fed today?

Sucking in a breath, Shinobu put her phone down on the table. She shifted her attention to the ongoing conversation between her sisters. Occasionally, her eyes would slide to her phone screen to check for a reply.

Minutes later, a reply was received. Her heart skipped a beat as she swiped open the notification. It was a photo of the familiar black kitten sitting on the bench, licking up a can of tuna. A peach coloured blur covered a small spot in the right corner of the photo. Was it his finger?

A genuine, unguarded smile crept up her lips. She tried to cover it with her cup of juice.

It didn't go unnoticed by Kanae. With a gentle clap of her hands, she switched into Shinobu interrogation mode. “Shinobu, you’ve been a bit distracted recently, wouldn’t you agree?”

Shinobu blinked at her. “Eh? No, I’m not.” Kanae had a keen sense for detecting emotions. Shinobu never could hide her feelings around Kanae.

“You seem kind of aloof,” Kanae said, narrowing her eyes. “Is it that… you’ve met a lucky someone?” She winked at her younger sister.

“No!” Shinobu felt herself turning red in the face.

“Your reaction tells me otherwise,” Kanae giggled.

Shinobu wanted to melt away. “Kanao, help me!” She tried to get Kanao on her side.

Kanao blinked and offered a simple, profound observation that didn’t help Shinobu in the slightest. “He sent you a picture. You’re smiling.”

“Kanao!”

The youngest maintained her innocent smile. Or perhaps it wasn’t so innocent after all.

Kanae giggled. “Tell me about him, dear sister.” She prompted Shinobu to answer. There was no denying the existence of a ‘lucky someone’ at that point.

Shinobu sighed. “I think… we’re friends?” Or were they? She had never put a label on their connection. Could they even be considered friends? “He’s one of Sanemi’s bandmates.” She continued.

“Mutuals?” Kanae made a thinking motion, rubbing her chin. “You know what, I’ll give you a list of ideas to catch his heart!” The older girl was clearly very excited about helping her younger sister.

“Why don’t you do them?” Shinobu fired back at her, clearly implying Sanemi.

“Hey! This is about you!” Kanae huffed.

“Well, you started it!” Shinobu dramatically crossed her arms.

Kanao stared speechless at the spectacle. Two legal adults going over a crisis in love. She was grateful that she had Tanjiro by her side.

Their catch-up session wrapped up half an hour later. Shinobu picked up her phone to read the messages she missed in the group chat. The screen lit up, showing the photo of a black cat eating. The photo Giyuu sent her earlier.

Her thumb moved to the upper right corner of the screen. She tapped the save button. Exiting the page, she found that Giyuu hadn’t sent her a text reply. The photo was his only response.

Nevertheless, it was enough for Shinobu. It may have been a quiet notification, but it felt like a meaningful step forward.

Chapter Text

There were only three days left until Rengoku’s birthday, yet Shinobu had just realised she had forgotten to get him a present. Occupied with sending out invitations, she had overlooked the most important part. She couldn’t possibly show up without a gift.

At the moment, Shinobu lay on her bed, scrolling through Pinterest for birthday gift ideas. She groaned. Nothing that came up felt right. She went to her gallery, hoping she would come across something that gave her inspiration.

The picture of Bartholomew eating caught her attention. What if… Shinobu jumped up from her bed. Rengoku, for all his loudness, has a sad and empty house. He had a kind, nurturing soul. A cat would be the perfect gift!

Shinobu patted herself on the chest, feeling proud. Or maybe she should thank Bartholomew instead. Having made up her mind, she got out the door and headed for a nearby pet shelter.

⨳

The pet shelter was filled with meowing and yowling and hissing. Shinobu stood as still as a statue in front of the rows of cats in cages. She felt extremely out of place.

The night she had met Bartholomew, she researched cat behaviours and what they needed. On the way to the shelter, she felt prepared, armed with research notes on cat care. When she reached, however, all her confidence washed down the drain.

How was she to care for a cat when she didn’t dare to even touch one?

Shinobu tried calming herself down. Three days. She need only put up with the cat for three days. Adopting a cat just the day before the party would be troublesome, no matter how much she wanted to. She couldn’t possibly gift the cat to Rengoku without a proper medical check-up beforehand.

She sucked in a breath. Perhaps it wouldn’t be that bad. After all, she also couldn’t possibly gift the animal to Rengoku while visibly flinching from it. She would use the three days she had to accustom herself to it.

Her current task was to pick out a cat. Would Rengoku like a kitten? Or perhaps an older cat? Shinobu thought about it for a while. According to a post she read before, it had said, ‘You don’t choose the cat, it chooses you’. But the animal was supposed to be a gift for someone else. What if the cat didn’t like Rengoku?

Deciding to just follow her gut, Shinobu walked through the rows of cages. A big, black cat scowled at her as she passed by. She gulped and scurried away. Nope, definitely not that one.

A few cages away, a fluffy ragdoll kitten was jumping up and down, meowing endlessly at her. Shinobu paused for a minute. Were those angry meows or excited meows? She couldn’t tell.

An orange blur in the corner of her vision caught her attention. To the right of the ragdoll, an orange tabby stared at her with its curious, yellow-orange eyes. She held its gaze. It gave her a single, dragged-out ‘meoww’

Shinobu wondered whether this would be the one. If Rengoku were a cat, he would look exactly like it. She read the tag placed on the cage. Orange was its name. It seemed like a calm cat. One easy enough to handle.

Thus, she made up her mind. She informed the shelter worker of her choice and paid the fees. The worker had asked whether she wanted to hold it before finalising her decision. Shinobu declined immediately.

With the paperwork done, the cat was placed into a grey carrier and handed to Shinobu. Placing the carrier on the passenger seat of her car, she drove to a nearby vet clinic.

She occasionally glanced at the carrier, fearing the creature inside would break out and sabotage her car. As if responding to her thoughts, an orange paw flew out from the bars of the carrier.

Shinobu jumped. The paw receded inside the carrier. She grumbled to herself, starting to question all her life choices. “Why didn’t I just get him a new guitar pick… Stupid, reckless ideas…”

The vet check-up went surprisingly smoothly. A nurse had helped carry the cat out from the carrier and back in when it was done. Shinobu hadn’t needed to touch the animal at all. The pet shelter had already vaccinated and dewormed the animal, so it was only a quick wellness check.

Her next stop was the supermarket. She needed to get food and supplies for the cat. Grabbing a trolley, she placed the pet carrier in it. Leaving the cat alone in the car would be weird, after all.

Shinobu walked along the aisle of pet supplies. She got the smallest bag of litter available and six cans of canned tuna. Surely that would be enough, right? She contemplated whether or not to get treats.

Thinking that treats would get the cat to like her more, she grabbed two bags off the shelf. Tuna or chicken… She looked at the carrier in the trolley and bent down to meet the cat, holding out the two bags.

“Tuna or chicken, Orange?”

The cat blinked at her and gave a long, dramatic meow. Shinobu sighed and threw both bags into the trolley. Next to the treat section were shelves full of toys. She picked up a plush fish toy to inspect. It squeaked when she squeezed it.

A loud meow came from the trolley. Shinobu squeezed the squeaky toy again. The cat responded with an equally loud meow. The sides of her lips curled up. How cute. She put the squeaky fish into the trolley as well.

It was already evening by the time Shinobu got home. The easy part — obtaining a cat — was over. Now she had to endure three painful days with it in her home. She sighed. Of all the times, Mitsuri had gone on a family hiking trip just when Shinobu needed her help the most.

Shinobu opened the bathroom door and set the pet carrier inside. She went out to the living room cabinets to search for a tray. The one she found wasn’t very big, but it would be sufficient for cat litter.

The cat watched her move around with its body sprawled out. Shinobu poured the bag of litter into the tray and placed it inside the shower area. She opened a can of tuna and placed it along with a small bowl of water she had filled earlier on the floor in front of the carrier. The fish toy was also placed on the floor, a bit further away from the food.

An idea suddenly popped into her head. She scuttled to her bedroom to take her old phone. Shinobu usually kept it charged just in case. She used the old phone to call her newer one, the former on her second account and the latter on her main account. She placed the phone down on the bathroom countertop, with the camera peeking downwards.

This way, she could watch the cat without being in the same room! Shinobu gently applauded herself.

With her preparations complete, she gathered up her courage to open the carrier gate. What if it jumped at her? What if it was mad for being taken from the shelter? Or worse, what if it ate her? Since Mitsuri wasn’t home, no one would spot her corpse! She gulped at the thought.

The girl pumped her fists. No matter what, she still had to let it out of the carrier. She slowly approached the carrier with her left hand, watching for any reaction from the cat. Sliding the lock open, she fled the bathroom as fast as she could and closed the door.

Shinobu let out a breath of relief. Her heart was beating so fast that it could jump out of her chest. She took up her phone to watch the cat. Slowly, it was walking out of the carrier. It looked left and right, then headed straight to the food.

She watched as the orange fluffball chowed down on the canned tuna. It didn’t seem to feel threatened. Shinobu’s stomach growled while watching cat asmr.

After preparing some udon noodles for dinner, she sat down on the couch. Her favourite anime had just released a new episode. Her phone was right next to her, so she could watch over Orange.

An hour later, the cat still showed no signs of displeasure. In fact, it seemed quite happy. The fish toy was keeping it occupied. It pranced and chewed on the toy. Shinobu decided to leave it to itself a little longer.

Around 11 o’clock that night, Shinobu lay sprawled on her bed, scrolling from reel to reel. She was bored out of her mind, yet she wasn’t tired enough to go to bed. That was when it occurred to her that her older phone couldn’t stay on video call for long. Although she constantly kept it charged, it still had a bad battery problem. A few hours would drain all its battery.

She let out a defeated wail. Nonetheless, she tried to make the situation feel more positive. This was a chance to get over her fear of cats! She started devising a plan: walk in with the treats she bought earlier, distract the cat, grab her phone.

Shinobu felt like she was going to war.

She opened up the pack of cat treat sticks and tore one open. Treat acquired. Trying to calm her racing heart, she slowly opened the bathroom door. The cat was lying down with its stomach facing up. Target spotted.

Sensing her presence, the cat sat up on its hind legs. It blinked at Shinobu. She tensed up. “Meow”, it greeted. She extended her arm as far as she could, letting the cat see the treat she held.

It walked over immediately. Shinobu’s heart was that close to flying out of her chest. The cat licked up the treat stick happily as she squeezed it out bit by bit.

While the cat was distracted by the food, Shinobu used her other hand to reach for her phone and shove it into her pocket. Mission accomplished. Now what? Shinobu couldn’t possibly take the unfinished treat away from the cat. That would be rude. And what if the cat got mad? She decided to let it finish the treat first.

As said cat almost finished the treat stick, Shinobu’s fingers had to squeeze closer and closer to its mouth. What if it mistook her for food and bit her finger? Luckily, her worries didn’t happen. Instead, the cat licked her fingers.

It was a weird sensation. Shinobu didn’t feel relieved by it, but at least it was ten times better than chowing down on her finger.

After the treat stick was finished, Shinobu took it away from the cat, about to get up and leave. The cat, however, had other plans. It shoved its head into Shinobu’s palm. The girl yelped.

Her hand was tense against the soft fur of the cat. She didn’t dare to move it. Unsatisfied with her lack of action, the cat rubbed its head on her palm and purred. Shinobu wondered whether it was a battle cry. Or did it simply want to be petted?

“Talk about personal boundaries…” Shinobu murmured. Was this an assault by a cat?

She remembered her cheer-up attempt earlier. This was a chance to get over her fear of cats! The one in front of her proved to be nothing but docile and nice, surely it wouldn’t hurt to engage a little, right?

Shinobu slowly moved her hand left and right over the cat's head. It purred in response and pushed itself closer against her palm. She continued her slow movements, even slightly moving lower to the side of its face just a little.

It’s not that bad…

A small smile formed on her face. Maybe these little things aren’t so terrifying after all.

A thought popped into her head. She hurried out of the bathroom and into the living room to grab a cushion. When she got back into the bathroom, the cat sat quietly facing the door, as if waiting for her to return.

She put the cushion down next to the carrier. It would be a makeshift bed for the cat for now. Leaving it to sleep on the cold, hard floor would be far too cruel. The cat walked over to the cushion and got onto it. It plopped onto its side, leaning its head to settle on the cushion.

Shinobu reached out to give it one last pat before exiting the bathroom and closing the door. She had a sensation of pride in her chest. It wasn’t much, but she felt like she had just overcome an important milestone in her life.

Chapter Text

The next morning, Shinobu woke to a slight pressure on her chest. She stretched her arms and rubbed her eyes, then used a hand to push the weird weight off her chest. How soft… Two mushy paws pressed on her hand. Mushy mushy… wait…

She snapped her eyes open. Big, yellow-orange eyes stared back at her. Shinobu shrieked and darted up from her bed, causing the bundle of orange to roll down from her chest. A dramatic meow filled the space.

Why was it in here?!

Shinobu definitely closed the door to the bathroom last night. She even double-checked to be sure. Perhaps… The bathroom window! It led to the kitchen, and she usually kept it open to let out steam from her hot showers. How could she have been so careless?

After being forcefully rolled down, the cat was sprawled on her legs, intently staring at her. It meowed. Shinobu was at a complete loss for what to do. Not daring to move her legs, she stared back at the feline.

It was a standoff. Shinobu cringed. Why wasn’t it looking away? She didn’t have food on her face, for god’s sake. Wait… what if it wants to eat me?!

After what seemed like an eternity of staring competition, the cat got up and stepped on her body, moving closer and closer to her face. She leaned backwards and clenched her fists. My end is near.

It stopped on her stomach and meowed — another one of its long, dramatic ones. Sharp, shiny teeth caught her attention—very sharp, very shiny teeth. Shinobu gulped. Her back was already against the headboard. Nothing could save her now.

The cat stared at her again, then all of a sudden, it shoved its head into her face. She squeezed her eyes closed out of instinct. Goodbye everyone.

Shinobu was shocked to find that no harm had come to her. The animal rubbed itself on her face, then retreated with a dissatisfied meow. It continued staring at her, as if expecting something.

A light bulb appeared in her head. It was hungry! She had to get up to get its food, but the feline had no intention of getting off her body. Hesitating, she slowly brought her arm up. Its gaze followed the moving arm.

She stopped just a small distance away from its head. With a gulp, she brought the hand down to pet the cat. It purred in response, leaning into the extended hand.

The fear in her gradually subsided, replaced by a feeling of calmness. Of course, cats don’t eat humans. Or do they… She made a mental note to look it up later. Or maybe not. Ignorance is bliss, as they say.

Seemingly satisfied, the cat hopped down from her bed and onto the floor. It sat there looking at Shinobu. Getting the feeling that it wanted her to get out of bed, she climbed off as well.

She followed it out of her room, where it then jumped onto the couch to lie in a sunbeam reflected in from the patio. She made her way to the kitchen to grab the canned tuna.

After opening the can, she pondered where to put it. Placing its food inside the bathroom would be useless now, as it was already outside. She decided to put the can down in front of the couch. Then, she went inside the bathroom to retrieve the bowl of water and refilled it before setting it down beside the canned food.

Shinobu left the cat to brush her teeth. Surely it wouldn’t cause any trouble, right? Up till then, it had proved docile. It was just a bit touchy. She came out of the bathroom to find the can of tuna empty. The little thing ate fast.

Deciding to make herself bacon and eggs for breakfast, she got to work in her kitchen. Ten minutes later, she emerged with a plate of appetising food. Shinobu plopped onto the couch, the opposite side of where the cat lay. She took up the remote to turn on the TV.

Sensing the shift of the couch, the cat got up from its position. It sniffed the air for a moment, then locked its eyes on the plate of food in Shinobu’s hand. Slowly, it strode over to where she sat and gave a demanding meow.

Shinobu raised an eyebrow at the creature. Was it hungry? But she had only just fed it. Unhappy with her lack of action, it meowed at her again, flashing those sharp teeth. She sighed and picked up a piece of her scrambled eggs. Putting it on her palm, she offered it to the cat. It muched the egg up happily.

She got back to eating her bacon when another meow made her turn her head. The feline stared at Shinobu, as if requesting more food. “Didn’t you just eat…” She said to it, lips pursed. Perhaps she was going insane, talking to a cat.

Another persistent meow made her give in to its request. She offered another piece of egg to it, which it didn’t take. If cats could have a deadpan expression, that was the face it made.

Shinobu pursed her lips. What did it want? Oh, the bacon? She pulled out her phone to search for whether cats could eat bacon. Poisoning the little fella would be a very bad outcome.

Her research told her that it wasn’t recommended to feed a cat bacon. With that in mind, she turned back to the cat. “I’m sorry, but you can’t have bacon.” Maybe the cat could understand her words, since it responded with a petty, displeased meow.

Shinobu awkwardly smiled at it. She got up from the couch– bringing along her food to make sure the cat didn’t eat it– and took a cat treat out from the bag. Sitting back down on the couch, she tore the treat open and offered it to the cat. No more complaining meows were given by the feline.

She continued her food, watching a comedy program currently airing on TV. The cat had gone back to lying belly-up on the couch, this time a little bit closer to Shinobu. It looked like it was about to drift off to sleep.

The girl got up from her seat and went into the bathroom to get the squeaky fish toy she had bought for the cat. She placed the fish on its open stomach, and the cat moved its arm to wrap around the toy.

How cute… Shinobu giggled. She picked up her phone and snapped a picture of the cat. Then, she opened up a certain man’s contact and sent the image to him.

@smilingmenace: Asset out of containment. Protocol shifted from observation to… cohabitation.

Far away, in another neighbourhood, a black-haired man let out a yawn. Having stayed up till four in the morning grinding video games, dark circles were evident under his eyes. Desperate for in-game currency, he had completed every achievement left in one night.

He got up to brush his teeth, still trying to unfog his vision. With a toothbrush in hand, he stared at his reflection in the bathroom mirror. Unruly hair covered part of his eyes. It was time for a haircut.

After freshening up, he walked back to his bedroom to grab his phone. He stared at the open screen for a moment, certainly not expecting a text from her.

@smilingmenace: 🖇️sent an attachment

He clicked on the notification. A photo of an orange cat hugging a plush fish toy, sleeping, was what he saw. His eyes went to the message below the photo. Asset… out of containment…? Cohabitation?

Was she drunk? He wondered. Why else would a person who's terrified of cats have one in their home? He thought back to the evening that they shared with Bartholomew the kitten. She looked like she was on the verge of dropping dead with the cat on her.

He read the text again. And again. And again. Then he triple-checked the photo to make sure it was a cat he was seeing. Maybe his brain short-circuited. After all, he did stay up pretty late.

100% sure it was a cat he was seeing, he blinked at his phone screen, then slowly typed in a message.

@squirtlegun: you got a cat?

He furrowed his brows seeing his username. His elder sister had taken the liberty of making sure he was socially caught up and created an account for him years back. He was against it back then, hence his sister decided on the username @squirtlegun. He didn’t know what to change it to, so it just stayed as that for years.

A text was received not long after.

@smilingmenace: Astute observation. It’s for Rengoku. Don’t tell him.

@squirtlegun: I won’t

He paused for a while, hesitating whether or not to ask her about it further.

@squirtlegun: are you okay with it?

@smilingmenace: I pet it.

The man somehow got a feeling that beyond the screen, the girl had an extremely proud and gleeful expression on her face.

@squirtlegun: good

@squirtlegun: I gave Bartholomew chicken yesterday. He didn’t like it

@smilingmenace: I’ll note that down.

He raised an eyebrow. Why would she note that down? What a weird woman.

On the other side of the phone, Shinobu was indeed feeling proud of herself. In fact, she felt so proud that she decided to spend a whole afternoon on her anime as a reward.

Chapter Text

Over the past two days, Shinobu had successfully accustomed herself to the presence of the cat. When she got back from her lectures yesterday, the cat was sitting quietly near the door, as if welcoming her home.

Even though she had only kept the cat for three days, she couldn’t deny that she somehow had gotten used to its company. The animal was calmer than she’d expected at first. Besides being a little needy for pets, it didn’t bother her much.

The said animal was currently in the passenger seat of her car, inside its carrier. It was finally the day of Rengoku’s birthday. As the organiser (no one else was serious enough to take action on making plans), Shinobu was headed towards the venue to set up decorations.

Earlier, as she left the house, Mitsuri had just come back from her hiking trip. She hurried off inside to shower and get ready for the party. Shinobu hadn’t had the chance to tell her about the cat.

She drove into the parking lot of a nearby McDonald’s. The party venue was kept secret from Rengoku. He would wear a blindfold while Tengen drove him over.

A cat treat stick in hand, she opened the door to the passenger seat and was greeted by a soft meow from inside the carrier. A tiny smile tugged on her lips. She hadn’t fully gotten over her fear of furry animals, but it was a significant improvement.

Through the bars of the carrier, Shinobu squeezed the treat out for the cat to enjoy. It happily licked up the food. How cute… She watched it eat, and a feeling of sadness hung in her heart. After the party, she would never see the feline again. Or not at her home, at least.

Shaking away that feeling, she entered the restaurant, the carrier in her left hand, a bag full of balloons, party poppers, etc in the right.

Shinobu was surprised by the sight before her. Or rather, the man in front of her. He was helping the restaurant employees arrange party banners. She didn’t recall asking anyone to arrive early to help out, so why was he there?

“Tomioka.” She called out, an eyebrow raised in confusion.

The black-haired man turned his head towards her direction. “Kochou,” he acknowledged.

“How diligent of you to willingly help out.” She gave him her usual, gentle smile, albeit narrowing her eyes at him teasingly.

Giyuu had a deadpan expression, one almost imperceptible. Shinobu, sensing he wouldn’t reply, handed out a bag of balloons to him. “Help me pump these up, won’t you?”

He glanced at the bag in her hand, then took it from her with a nod. Shinobu’s smile widened. She rummaged through the big bag of decorations and took out a balloon pump. “Here,” she swiped the object left and right to garner his attention.

With Giyuu helping with the balloons, she headed towards the kitchen to inquire about the food preparation. Beforehand, she had given the organisers a list of what the guests preferred to eat, which had taken a considerable amount of time, given the long list of invited attendees. Some of which she didn’t even know.

After confirming the food list with an employee, she was about to go over preferred decorations with the restaurant manager. She was stopped by the previous employee. “Miss, might we ask if you want to refrigerate the cake?”

That’s when it dawned on her that in the midst of all the hustle and bustle, she had forgotten the essence of a birthday party. The cake! Shinobu pursed her lips. She needed to discuss the decorations of the party with the manager, who was already waiting for her. There wouldn’t be a chance to get the cake.

Maybe she could tell the manager to wait? But that would be exceedingly rude. Ahah! Shinobu’s eyes widened in realisation. She had a diligent helper right here in the restaurant.

Telling the employee that they’ll be back with the cake in a while, she strode over to Giyuu. “Tomioka? Could you perhaps pick up the cake? It’s from the bakery you recommended.” She smiled. It might have sounded like a question, yet ‘no’ didn’t seem like a choice.

The man in front of her nodded, face as emotionless as ever. Though if you looked closely enough, there may have been a hint of intrigue in those eyes. Shinobu grinned, happy he agreed. She took out her phone to send him a screenshot. “Here’s the order slip, don’t get the wrong cake!” And off she went.

Giyuu stared at where she had just stood, then pulled out his device from his pocket to look at what she had sent him. His gaze went to the texts above the screenshot. She got a cat… He looked around the restaurant, having just remembered she had come in holding a pet carrier. It was spotted on a table close to the door.

He bent down to look inside the carrier. Bright orange fur and yellow-orange eyes greeted him. “It resembles Rengoku…” He muttered to himself. The orange bundle walked closer to him, staring intently from inside the carrier. Giyuu stared back. A fine choice, he thought.

Leaving the cat, he got out the front door and into his car.

Ten minutes later, he arrived at the bakery. After showing the worker the order slip, she politely asked him to wait for a bit. Giyuu tried to ignore the way she kept giggling at him like a crazed stalker. The worker called over another woman, and they both stared at the man with giggles and whispers. He wondered if he had something on his face.

Not long after, a giant box was brought out from the kitchen. His eyes widened slightly. Was this her definition of ‘big enough to feed a small army’? The male baker who brought it out had a wide grin on his face. “That’s the biggest cake I’ve ever made! Thanks for the request, young lad!”

Giyuu gave him a small bow. Then came the struggle of carrying the cake safely to his car. It was so tall he had to peek out from the sides of the box. With slow and steady steps, he moved towards his car and gently placed the cake box inside. He let out a breath of relief. If the cake had fallen, hell would have broken loose.

He reentered the restaurant approximately ten minutes later. An employee saw his struggling state and offered to help carry the cake, which he gratefully accepted.

After setting the cake down, he got back to pumping balloon letters, those of which spelt out ‘HAPPY BIRTHDAY RENGOKU’. Shinobu came up to him a while later. He figured she was done with her preparations, as she picked up the balloon pump to help him with the decorations. He glanced around the restaurant. It was already filled with plenty of balloons and banners, courtesy of the restaurant workers. The ones he was pumping must be the last of them.

“Tomioka, what did you get for Rengoku?” The girl beside him asked.

“Cat food,” Giyuu responded flatly. He sensed the woman next to him pause in her actions.

Shinobu tilted her head at him and laughed, her face a mixture of amusement and disbelief. “My, my, people might think we ganged up on getting presents.”

He blinked at her. “I forgot to buy a gift. Then I remembered you got him a cat, so…” he trailed off, looking downwards.

Shinobu merely laughed at his words. “How practical of you, Tomioka.”

The man grunted-hummed in response.

Their talk was interrupted by the arrival of Sanemi, along with a shorter, black-haired man Shinobu recognised as one of Rengoku’s bandmates. Iguro Obanai, was it? He wore a white mask over his mouth, which only made his eyes stand out even more. The man had heterochromia; one of his eyes was a yellowish hue, the other blue.

“Yo,” Sanemi greeted the two. The man next to him followed suit, murmuring a ‘hello’. Shinobu gave him a warm welcome, “Hello! I’m Kochou Shinobu.” He nodded in acknowledgement.

The woman’s eyes went down to the box in Sanemi’s arms. She raised a brow. “What’s in there?”

Sanemi had a wicked grin spread over his face. “I wouldn’t recommend opening it. This one’s a fighter!” He exclaimed.

“Did you get him a venomous snake…?” Shinobu asked warily.

The man grinned. “You might just be a genius,” He saluted her. “That will be my next gift idea!”

“This one…” Sanemi mimicked a drumroll with his tongue. “Is a cat!” He looked extremely proud of himself. “I picked it off the street!”

Next to him, Obanai was holding a white carrier. “This… is also a cat.” He turned the carrier around to allow Giyuu and Shinobu a view of the white cat inside. It was facing the other direction, so they couldn’t see its face.

Shinobu felt her brain short-circuit. She looked over at Giyuu, who held his ever-indifferent expression. “Perhaps your cat food was a good call…” She muttered to him. He shrugged faintly.

Not long after, guests started pouring in from the door. Mitsuri included. She greeted the group with a wide smile. A cardboard box was in her arms. Shinobu narrowed her eyes at the sight. It better not be…

Mitsuri opened the box for her friends to see the gift she brought. “Look! I found them left all alone on the way back from my camping trip! Aren’t they the cutest! Perfect birthday gift!” Inside the box were five kittens toppling over one another.

Shinobu, speechless, gave Mitsuri a thumbs up. Sanemi, on the other hand, burst out with surprise. “No way! I got him a cat, too!”

“So did I.” Shinobu sighed. Mitsuri squealed in excitement. Feline count: 8.

The pink-haired girl looked over to the right of Sanemi, where Iguro Obanai sat. She blinked at him in confusion, then her eyes lit up in recognition. “Oh! You’re that keyboardist, right? Hello! I’m Kanroji Mitsuri!” She said with her usual cheer.

The man slightly looked to the side, avoiding her gaze. “Iguro Obanai,” he stated. If anyone paid attention, they would see his hand fiddling with the hem of his shirt.

Soon after, the star of the party arrived. He entered the restaurant, being led by Tengen. “I SMELL BURGERS! IS THIS MCDONALD’S?!” The bright-haired man exclaimed. His voice was, as usual, booming.

Tengen untied the knot of his blindfold, letting the cloth fall. Rengoku stared at his surroundings in awe. “A MCDONALD’S BIRTHDAY PARTY! I LOVE IT!”

Muichiro followed close behind the two. Shinobu spotted two boxes in his arms. Please don’t tell me those are…

Rengoku was led to the middle of a table. A paper crown given by the staff was placed on his head. With that, their party began.

After rounds of party games were played, it was time for food to be served. All the attendees settled down in their seats. Shinobu, who had been making sure the people got their chosen food packages, hadn’t had the chance to save a seat for herself.

Luckily, Mitsuri called her over to her area. She beckoned her friend into the chair next to her, which was, coincidentally, also next to Giyuu’s. Shinobu slotted herself in between the two. The chairs were placed quite close to each other due to the overwhelming guest list.

She observed the seating of each attendee. No seating arrangement was made prior to the party, allowing the guests more freedom. But it also meant more chances of trouble. As the organiser, she couldn’t ignore the well-being of her guests.

Shinobu was slightly surprised to see Mitsuri conversing with Obanai, who was sitting opposite her. The man seemed embarrassed and awkward, but he tried his best to maintain the conversation between them. Shinobu chuckled at the sight.

Tengen was showing his step-brother, Muichiro, how to stack and eat six chicken nuggets at once. The younger boy listened attentively as if it were an important lesson. Next to Tengen, Rengoku was talking with multiple friends all at once. He had a big smile on his face, bigger than his usual one. It made Shinobu happy, knowing the party was to his delight.

Her attention fell to the man beside her. He was chewing on his chicken nuggets dipped in sweet and sour sauce.

“Sweet and sour or barbecue.” She asked him.

Giyuu turned his head to look at her. “Sweet and sour.” A curt response.

Shinobu smiled. “I wholeheartedly agree. Barbecue is overrated.”

He stared into her eyes for a moment, as if inspecting her, then turned back to his box of nuggets.

After their meals were finished, gifts were to be presented one by one. Shinobu got the privilege of going first. She brought over the carrier containing the orange cat and handed it to the man. “Happy birthday!”

Rengoku’s smile widened as he opened the carrier. He scooped up the orange cat and lifted it up for all to see. “WHAT A MAGNIFICENT CREATURE! WE SHALL BECOME THE BESTEST OF FRIENDS!” The cat in his hands meowed distastefully.

Sanemi was next in line to present his gift. He dropped a cardboard box into Rengoku’s open arms. The latter raised his eyebrows in curiosity. He peeled apart the tape covering the box and… pulled out a yowling, struggling grey cat. It twisted and turned in his hands, trying to free itself.

Rengoku didn’t seem disappointed in the slightest, quite the opposite, in fact. “WHAT FIGHTING SPIRIT! YOU SHALL MAKE A FINE DOOR GUARD!”

He put the angry feline back into the box and awaited his next present. Mitsuri walked up, a box in her hand. “Happy birthday, Rengoku!”

The man took the box with a wide grin. He opened it and exclaimed in surprise. “FIVE MORE! WHAT A BOUNTIFUL DAY!” Gathering all five kittens in his arms, he didn’t look upset about receiving seven cats on his birthday.

He put the squirming kittens back inside their box. Tengen walked up to him next, another cardboard box in hand, one of the boxes Shinobu had seen Muichiro carrying in earlier.

Tengen set the box on the table in front of Rengoku and opened it. He pulled out a mighty-looking sphynx cat with bright yellow eyes. A golden spikey collar adorned with gems was hanging on its neck.

“Behold! THE GOD OF CATS!”

Rengoku took the cat from his friend. “WHAT A NOBLE TITLE!”

Shinobu rubbed her temple, utterly speechless at the situation. It felt like they all shared a single brain cell.

Obanai was next in line, Muichiro following straight behind him. The two gifted him a cat each, the former presenting a white one, the latter a calico. Rengoku’s smile became more strained, but no less sincere. “WE SHALL REQUIRE MORE LITTER!”

After Muichiro was done, Giyuu walked up with a big bag of kibble. He put the heavy bag onto the table in front of his friend and stated the obvious, “Cat food.”

Rengoku blinked at the bag in front of him. “HOW SMART, TOMIOKA!” He grinned.

With the gift session wrapped up a while after, the giant cake was brought out from the kitchen. A three-layer, rich chocolate cake topped with pop rocks, marshmallows, and bright red cherries.

Unsurprisingly, the entire thing was devoured clean by everyone, courtesy of all the big appetite people present. Shinobu furrowed her brows in thought. Perhaps next time someone has a birthday party, an even bigger cake would be better.

She jumped when something furry brushed against her leg. Looking down, she spotted a kitten wandering around under the table. It was a reminder to her that cats were running around the whole place.

Mere moments before, Rengoku had decided to let loose all of the felines from their boxes or cages, with a loud proclamation saying, “I AM THE NEKOMANCER!”

It was safe to say hell broke loose. If a stranger came into the restaurant, they’d wonder whether this was a party for humans or for cats. Multiple felines zoomed over the place. It was chaos. And Rengoku loved it.

Sanemi grumbled next to Shinobu. “His vet bills are 'bouta fly through the roof.”

“I wonder what barbecued cats taste like,” Muichiro stated innocently. His words were met with protests and looks of horror.

Chapter Text

“I can’t get it right!” Mitsuri wailed. Endless sketches of scales surrounded her. According to her, the sketches turned out either ‘too cute’ or ‘not science-y enough’.

Outside the circle of failed sketches sat Shinobu, who read through her textbooks while providing moral support for her friend. “I think this one isn’t bad.” She picked up a discarded sketch, showing Mitsuri.

“The shading is all wrong!” Mitsuri wailed again. “What am I to do…” She leaned backwards onto the floor, burnt out from all her attempts. The project was extremely important for her grade, and the due date was too soon for comfort.

Shinobu searched through her brain for solutions. After a whole minute of deep thinking, someone came to mind. She was reminded of the introduction that Tengen had once given them on Iguro Obanai. If her memory didn’t fail her, he was a herpetology student, which meant he definitely had examples or maybe specimens for Mitsuri to observe.

She tapped on Mitsuri’s shoulder, which was still lying on the ground. “You know who literally studies scales for a living? Iguro. He probably has some detailed sketches. Or… specimens.”

Mitsuri flew up from the floor, turning to Shinobu with a horrified look. “I can’t ask him! That’s like asking a master chef to watch you burn toast!”

Shinobu sighed. “That’s your best bet right now, though.” Deep down, she really hoped that Mitsuri would ask him for help. She may be a total dummy at relationships, but she wasn’t blind enough not to notice how Obanai would fidget with his shirt and avoid Mitsuri’s gaze when they spoke at the party a few days prior.

“I’ll think about it…” Mitsuri mumbled.

Shinobu stood up, tugging on her friend’s arm. “Let’s go grab something to drink. That’ll cheer you up!” The pink-haired girl followed along solemnly.

The two left the art room and headed for the campus coffee shop. On the way there, Shinobu felt a tug on her left arm. “Hey, that’s Tomioka and Iguro!” Mitsuri whispered, for some reason.

Shinobu lifted her eyebrows at Mitsuri suggestively, as if saying, ‘this is fate’. She pumped her fists for Mitsuri and motioned for her to talk to him.

With a deep breath, she walked up to the pair standing in the hallway. Shinobu was being dragged behind her.

“Iguro-san! Perfect timing!” Mitsuri blurts out, bowing slightly. Obanai’s eyes widened slightly. Giyuu just blinked at the two girls.

“Uhm, I was hoping you could help me with my project… It’s on reptile scales! ‘Cause you’re the absolute expert and I would really appreciate it if… maybe… you would look at my sketches!” She rambled on about the importance of the project and her gratefulness if he agreed to help.

Obanai stared at her in silence for a moment, processing the waterfall of information dumped on him in a rap. He clutched his books tighter, growing red in the ears. “I… have a preserved specimen, in my lab. For study. You could… see it.”

Mitsuri’s face lit up brighter than the sun. “Really? That would be amazing!”

Obanai nodded, looking embarrassed.

“When are you free? Now?” Mitsuri beamed at him excitedly.

“Yea, that’d be fine.”

“Yay! Let’s get going!” Mitsuri tugged on Shinobu’s arm. The latter shot a surprised look at her friend. She didn’t want to be a third wheel to a painfully shy snake expert and an incredibly bubbly artist.

“Uh, I don’t think I’m going to come along.” Shinobu smiled awkwardly at her friend.

Mitsuri shook her head dramatically, “Nonsense! You’re my emotional support human!” She then gave Shinobu a stern look that said, ‘You aren’t going to leave me to fend for myself.’

Shinobu looked at Mitsuri with pleading eyes. Mitsuri sighed. “Tomioka, won’t you come too? Extra opinions would be helpful!” She turned back to Shinobu with eyes that spelt out, ‘That does it.’

Shinobu snapped her head towards Giyuu. She blinked at him with wide, puppy eyes, held both her palms together, and mouthed ‘help’.

Giyuu nodded. Frankly, he didn’t even hear her question properly. He had only nodded because of hearing his name called, plus Shinobu’s pleading, expectant eyes. Inside his mind, he was trying to understand the logic behind how girls were able to communicate using their eyes.

“Great!” Mitsuri cheered.

The group of four arrived in the lab a short while later. The place was filled with rows of glass cages containing various reptiles, most of which were snakes or lizards. A counter with stacked files and a laptop was placed close to the cages. Likely where Obanai did his work.

Obanai cleared out the counter and told them to take a seat while he searched for the needed specimens. Mitsuri sat on a chair placed next to the counter, laying out her art supplies and some of her previous sketches. She observed one of the snake cages next to her— a corn snake cage. She ‘aww’d at it and waved hello to the creature inside.

Shinobu, on the other hand, kept her distance from the cages as far as possible. She did not fancy those slithering ribbons at all. The girl pulled a chair from the counter and dragged it close to the door, the safest spot in the whole room.

She pulled out her phone to continue a game of block blast. The scraping of plastic against the floor made her turn her head. Giyuu had dragged his chair close to the door, too. He sat down on it, a small distance next to Shinobu.

She raised an eyebrow at his actions. “Why are you sitting here?”

“I don’t like snakes.” He answered flatly.

Shinobu giggled at his words. Who knew the cold, emotionless rockstar Giyuu was scared of snakes?

“Scaredy cat,” she teased.

He didn’t appear to share her humour. Although maybe in a brave attempt to continue the conversation, he asked her, “Why are you here?”

Shinobu frowned at him. “I don’t like snakes either.”

And as if the word foreign, he very, very slowly said, “Scaredy cat”.

Shinobu felt her brain break down. A solid ten seconds later, she shook herself out of her shocked state. Feeling her cheeks turn red, she turned away from the man. What a foul attempt.

Unsatisfied with having her own words used back on her, she forced herself to turn around and face him. “That’s my line!”

Giyuu stared at her, head slightly tilted. The corners of his lips raised so faintly that it was almost imperceptible. If one looked closely enough, a hint of myrth hid in his eyes.

Shinobu huffed in frustration, looking away from him. She diverted her attention to the other pair sitting at the counter. Obanai had returned with a few frames containing a variety of scales and skin.

A flustered, grateful Mitsuri bowed from her sitting position. “Oh my gosh, thank you so so so much! This is above and beyond!”

Obanai went red in the ears again.

Their consultation session was nothing if not awkwardly cute. Obanai spoke in short, technical sentences explaining ‘keratin layers’ and ‘light reflection’. His voice was unusually soft while talking to her.

At a point in their talk, he pointed to a specific spot on a strip of snake skin. Mitsuri leaned in close to see the details, her hair falling down and accidentally brushing his arm. Obanai freezes at the touch, tensing up. The girl was oblivious to his reaction, too focused on inspecting the pattern.

Across the room, Shinobu hid her smirk behind a textbook. “This is like watching two rare, skittish animals attempt a courtship dance. One of them might faint.” She whispered to the man beside her.

“He’s gentle,” Giyuu said, also subtly watching the two interact.

Shinobu’s smirk shifted into something more thoughtful. “You say that like it's a revelation. Some people are, you know? Not all of us communicate solely in glares and minor chords.”

“I know.”

Slightly thrown off by his quiet sincerity, a small, soft smile grew on her lips. “Good…”

All of a sudden, Shinobu was reminded of the drink she had yet to get. Earlier, their plans to get drinks were interrupted by the unexpected presence of Obanai and Giyuu. They had gone straight to the lab after Obanai agreed to help, leaving behind the original task.

With a sigh, Shinobu got up from her chair, about to leave the lab to grab her drink. “Do you want anything from the coffee shop?” She asked Giyuu.

He appeared deep in thought for a moment, then stood up as well. “I’ll go with you.”

Shinobu gave him a look that said ‘Really?’ She chuckled. “How chivalrous of you.”

Giyuu flashed her a deadpan expression. “Bathroom break.”

“And here I thought you were taking notes from Iguro.” She sighed, dramatically putting a hand over her heart. Her teasing remark was met with silence, as expected.

The two left the lab side by side, heading to the coffee shop.

“How many piercings do you have?”

Caught off guard by the sudden question, Giyuu stopped in his footsteps. He turned to look at Shinobu, who gave him an innocent smile in response.

“Nine.”

“An odd number? Where’s the extra one?” For some reason, Shinobu’s mind went to the possibility of a dick piercing. Maybe that wasn’t such an appropriate question to ask.

“My… navel.” He looked away from her. Was it shame?

Shinobu let out an imaginary breath of relief. “That’s unique.” She never knew that men got belly button piercings, too.

“It was my first piercing.” Giyuu tightened his lips a little.

Shinobu chuckled. “How special. I–” She was cut off by a rough shove from her right, sending her falling into Giyuu’s shoulder. Oof.

“I fucking hate all these road-blocking couples.” A scrawny guy with greasy hair walked by, or rather, pushed his way through. He flipped two middle fingers to them while walking away.

Shinobu stared at his leaving figure, still processing what had just happened. A moment after, she came to her senses and bounced back upright, realising she was still leaning on Giyuu’s shoulder. A faint warmth crept up her cheeks.

He narrowed his eyes at her. “Are you alright?”

“Y-yeah!” Concern. He had shown concern for her well-being. But then again… anyone would ask that. It wasn’t special. Shinobu couldn’t help the tiny feeling of disappointment welling in her chest.

Giyuu watched her for a while longer, then continued their walk towards the coffee shop. “Don’t block the road,” he told her impassively.

The blush returned to her cheeks at his words. And so did the irritation.

“What do you mean ‘don’t block the road’ ?!” She crossed her arms and scoffed. Getting no response from the man, she huffed and forcefully jabbed his arm with a finger. “Hey!”

Giyuu didn’t enlighten her. He walked on without another word from his phone.

Shinobu huffed. “You’re insufferable today.”

The two went in line at the coffee shop. Shinobu was reminded of the time when she overheard him talking on the phone with a woman, sounding all gentle and soft. Who even was it? Meh. Not her place to meddle.

“What do you want?” Giyuu asked her. Shinobu hadn’t realised it was already their turn.

“A brown sugar latte,” she told the employee.

Giyuu took out a card and tapped it on the machine, paying for both their drinks. He was handed a receipt with an order number from the employee, who told them to wait a few minutes.

“I’ll pay you back,” Shinobu told him.

Giyuu shook his head. “It’s fine.”

She thought about it momentarily, then agreed to his offer. “Thanks.” He merely nodded.

Not long after, they were on the way back to the lab where Mitsuri and Obanai were. Shinobu sipped her latte. “You know, for a man who spends his time around creatures with no eyelids, he’s surprisingly attentive.” She referred to Obanai, hoping Giyuu would pick up on what she meant.

Giyuu pondered her statement for a moment. “Snakes notice everything. They have to.”
Shinobu tilts her head, a teasing smirk on her lips. “Is that a herpetology fact, or a Tomioka Giyuu fact?”

He shot her a side eye. “Both.”

“Ah. So you’re saying the quiet ones see the most. How terribly profound.” She teased him, though silently acknowledging his quiet observance.

A bubbly squeal suddenly flew to her. “Shinobu! I’ve finally got it!” Mitsuri was out in the hallways, Obanai following close behind her.

“Are you done?” Shinobu asked her friend for confirmation.

“Yeppp.” Mitsuri turned towards Obanai. “Thank you so much, Iguro-san!”

The shorter man looked down towards the floor, probably hiding his embarrassment.

“Welp, we better get going! Bye-bye, Iguro-san!” Mitsuri turned towards Giyuu and Shinobu and shot the latter a knowing smirk. “You know, Shinobu, I can head back myself…” She winked at her friend.

Shinobu glared daggers at Mitsuri. Her usual soft smile quickly replaced it. “No need, let’s go.” She tugged on Mitsuri’s arm, pulling her away.

“See you, Tomioka.” She said while dragging a whining, unimpressed Mitsuri.

“See you.” He murmured.