Chapter Text
Maybe it was the new buildings.
Maybe it was because I hadn't been back in so long.
Either way, Kyoto looked different.
I kept glancing out the car window as Tsutako drove, trying to match what I remembered with what was actually there. Some streets looked familiar. Others didn't.
“It's just around the corner,” Tsu said.
I looked at her.
Then at the road.
Then back at her.
“We've been driving for twenty minutes.”
“That's because you're distracting me.”
“I haven't said anything.”
“Exactly. You're distracting me by being quiet.”
That didn't make sense.
I looked back out the window.
The paths seemed to twist in every possible direction. Left, right, another left, then somehow another right that looked suspiciously like the first left.
I was starting to think Tsu had no idea where she was going.
Actually, I was pretty sure of it.
I spotted the same shop we'd passed earlier.
I pointed towards it.
“Didn't we pass that already?”
“No.”
“We did.”
“We didn't.”
“That's the fifth time we've passed it.”
Tsu went quiet.
A few seconds later, she sighed.
“...Maybe.”
I smiled.
“Lost?”
“No.”
“Sure.”
“I know where we're going.”
“Of course.”
“I do.”
“Then why are we turning around?”
“Because we're taking a shortcut.”
“That's what you said three shortcuts ago.”
She shot me a look.
I looked back out the window.
Maybe I should stop.
Probably not.
After another fifteen minutes of going from one block to another, Tsu finally rolled the window down and asked a passerby for directions.
I tried very hard not to laugh.
It didn't work.
By the time we finally arrived, her face was bright red.
“Alas,” I said, stepping out of the car, “we have arrived in no less than forty-five minutes, all thanks to my dearest Tsu.”
Even through her sunglasses, I could feel the death glare.
“Shut up before I make you. You try winding through here.”
“No thanks. I wouldn't want to end up in the wrong state.”
I looked back at the road.
“Though, if you hadn't asked that stranger, we probably would've ended up in Osaka.”
Her elbow met my side.
Worth it.
The house was bigger than I remembered.
Or maybe everything just seemed bigger when I was younger.
Either way, I didn't feel like thinking about it.
The second we stepped inside, I kicked my shoes off and dropped onto the couch.
Thank goodness Tsu had hired cleaners before we arrived.
I don't think my legs could've held me up much longer.
“Yuu.”
I closed my eyes.
“Yuu.”
“I'm dead.”
“You're not.”
“Give me five minutes.”
“You've had five minutes.”
“Then give me another five.”
“No.”
I opened one eye.
She was already standing over me.
“Unpack.”
“I just got here.”
“So did I.”
“You drove.”
“So did you.”
“I was sitting.”
“Exactly. You've done nothing.”
I sighed and dragged myself off the couch.
There was no winning against her.
Boxes were scattered around the living room, each one labelled in Tsutako's handwriting.
Most of mine weren't labelled at all.
I knew where everything was supposed to go anyway.
Probably.
I started opening them and putting things wherever they seemed to fit.
Books went onto shelves.
Clothes went into drawers.
Random things whose purpose I had forgotten went into whichever cupboard looked least full.
It was going surprisingly well.
Until I found the photo.
I stopped.
A girl stared back at me from the slightly faded picture.
Black hair.
Bright green eyes.
A smile I hadn't seen in years.
Mitsuri.
I turned the photo over.
Her number was scribbled across the back.
I stared at it.
How had I forgotten to get her number on my phone?
That seemed like something I would've remembered.
Maybe I'd assumed we'd stay in contact.
Maybe I'd assumed we'd see each other again.
I hadn't.
Not until now.
I pulled out my phone.
Her number was barely legible.
I typed it in anyway.
If it didn't work, it didn't work.
The worst that could happen was some old grouch answering and complaining that I'd called the wrong number.
I pressed call.
One ring.
Two.
“Hello? Who am I speaking to?”
The voice sounded almost exactly the same.
I swallowed.
“Uh. Hey. You may not remember me, but I was your frie—”
“OH MY GOD. GIYUU?! IS IT YOU?!”
I blinked.
Oh.
So she remembered.
“Yeah. Hey, Mits.”
There was a squeal on the other end.
“I can't believe it's you! How did you even get my number?”
“I found a photo with it on the back.”
“WAIT. YOU'RE IN KYOTO?!”
I pulled the phone slightly away from my ear.
“You should've started with that! Where are you? I'm coming over. Don't hang up!”
I heard rustling.
Then footsteps.
Or at least what sounded like footsteps.
Only when I touched my face did I realise I was smiling.
Maybe moving here wouldn't be so bad after all.
“Alright, alright. I'm sending my location. You still live here, right?”
“Of course I do! Oh, hey, you're just down the block. I'll be there in a jiffy!”
“Sure. But the house isn't ready yet.”
“Pshh. Who cares? I'm coming to see you, silly.”
I laughed quietly.
“Fine. How have you been?”
“Oh, I've been great! Nothing much going on. How about you, Yuu?”
“Nothing much here either. My parents decided it'd be better for me to study here while they work in the US.”
The line went quiet for a moment.
“They're still at that?”
“Apparently.”
“Well... at least Tsutako's still with you, right? I can't wait to eat her food again! Which school are you going to?”
“Yeah. Tsu's with me.”
I paused.
“Sometimes it feels like you prefer her over me.”
“I mean, if the shoe fits.”
“...”
I stared at the ceiling.
“Have you gotten more rude?
I could hear her giggling.
“Guess you rubbed off on me.”
“We literally haven't talked in years.”
“Whateverrr. You still didn't answer my question.”
“Oh. Uh... Kimetsu High, I think.”
“Eeek! We'll be in the same school, Yuu! Maybe even the same class if we're lucky. I can't wait for you to meet my friends! You'll love them!”
Hadn't Mitsuri said the same thing about that kid who'd cut my hair for fun?
Not the point.
“If they're like you, then no thanks.”
“OKAY. RUDE. I'm literally coming over, and this is what I get?”
I started laughing.
Mitsuri joined in.
“Still, I do not want to socialise.”
“Oh, right. You're practically the most antisocial thing ever.”
“...”
“I would argue, but you're not wrong.”
“See~? Anyway, don't worry, Yuu. They're really nice. I swear you'll make friends with them!”
“That's optimistic.”
“I know!”
I sighed.
“I'm hanging up.”
“No you're not.”
“I might.”
“You won't.”
“...”
“Yuu?”
“Yeah?”
“I see your door.”
I frowned.
“What?”
“216B, right?”
“Yeah.”
“THEN LET ME IN!”
The call ended.
I stared at my phone.
She was fast.
I put it away and headed downstairs.
By the time I reached the door, someone was already knocking.
I opened it.
Mitsuri stood there, slightly out of breath.
She stared at me.
I stared back.
“YOU.”
“...Me.”
“COME HERE!”
Before I could react, she threw her arms around me.
I froze.
Apparently, personal space had become optional.
“Hey, Mits. Good to see you too.”
I tried to breathe.
“I'd appreciate it if you loosened your grip.”
“Oops! Sorry, dude.”
She stepped back, still grinning.
“I just can't believe you're here! It's been far too long!”
Her eyes moved over me.
“And you grew your hair!”
I touched it instinctively.
“Huh? Oh. Yeah. I did.”
I looked at hers.
“Your hair really suits you, though. The pink is pretty.”
Her eyes lit up.
“I know, right?! But I have to dye this thing every other week, or else the pink turns ugly.”
“Pfft. Good luck with that.”
“Hey!”
Before she could say anything else, I heard footsteps behind me.
Tsutako appeared from the kitchen.
“Hey, Yuu, who'd you bring ove—Mitsuri! Hi, dear.”
Mitsuri immediately turned.
“Hi, Tsu! How have you been?”
And just like that, I'd been replaced.
I followed them around the house while they talked, occasionally catching pieces of their conversation.
I heard something about dinner.
Something about school.
Something about a recipe.
I leaned against the wall.
“Mits.”
She glanced back.
“You know I'm still here, right?”
“Of course.”
“Then why are you ignoring me?”
“Because Tsu is more interesting.”
I stared at her.
Tsutako smiled.
“She's not wrong.”
“You guys are the worst.”
I trudged back upstairs.
A few seconds later, I heard Tsutako call after me.
“HEY, PRINCESS. AT LEAST CALL YOUR FRIEND OVER.”
“You seem to like her fine!”
“Maybe because I'm enjoyable to be around.”
“I HEARD THAT.”
“GOOD.”
I shut my bedroom door.
I could still hear them laughing downstairs.
Mitsuri eventually came upstairs and dropped herself onto my bed.
“How's my favourite drama queen?”
I looked up from the box I was opening.
“Can't you help me?”
“Not at all!”
“Gee. Thanks.”
She kicked her feet lightly against the mattress.
I went back to unpacking.
For a while, she talked.
A lot.
New neighbours.
School.
Some people she'd met.
A girl named Shinobu who had apparently threatened to spike the drink of some guy.
“You have got to be kidding me.”
“Nope! Don't worry, though. She didn't actually do it.”
“That is reassuring.”
“You're supposed to meet her.”
“Uh-huh.”
I looked at her.
“Remind me not to tell her what I'm allergic to.”
Mitsuri laughed.
“She'd probably find out anyway.”
“How?”
“I have no idea where she gets her information from!”
I stared at her.
“I'm going to ask again. Where the heck do you find such friends?”
“What? They're good people, I swear!”
“If I get found behind a dumpster, I'm blaming you.”
“You won't!”
“I'd like that in writing.”
She laughed again.
I smiled despite myself.
The room was quieter when her laughter stopped.
For a moment, neither of us said anything.
Then the door opened.
Tsutako leaned against the frame.
“Hey, Mits. Your parents came by. They said something about a dinner you have to go to?”
Mitsuri's head snapped up.
“Oh, shoot!”
She stood.
“Sorry, Yuu. I promised my parents we'd go to their company's dinner party. I completely forgot!”
“Don't worry. I'll see you at school.”
She nodded.
“I'll see you soon!”
Tsutako side-hugged her as they walked towards the door.
“Don't forget to come by next weekend. I'm trying a new recipe for donburi, okay?”
“Sure thing! Bye, Yuu! Bye, Tsu!”
“Bye.”
The door closed.
The room felt strangely quiet.
Tsutako came back in a moment later and ruffled my hair.
“At least you'll have her at school. No need to waste your socialising skills, huh?”
I thought about it.
“She's still too kind.”
Tsutako raised an eyebrow.
“That sounds like a complaint.”
“It isn't.”
“Well, you'll have to get used to it. I'm definitely inviting her over for dinner whenever.”
“Of course you are.”
She smiled and left.
I heard her footsteps disappear down the hallway.
A moment later, her voice drifted through the house.
“If it's not alphabetical, then how will I find what I need?!”
I sighed.
She was arranging the spices again.
I turned back to the boxes.
Mitsuri was...
A lot.
She'd walked back into my life like she'd never left it.
No awkwardness.
No hesitation.
Just Mitsuri.
She'd been there when I needed someone most, and somehow, years later, she still had the same effect on me.
The dread I'd been carrying since we'd decided to move here had quietened.
Not gone.
Just quieter.
Mitsuri had always been good at that.
I looked down at the photo still sitting beside me.
She was probably the closest thing I had to a best friend.
...
Well.
That was after Sabito.
I looked away.
Stop that.
Nothing's going to happen to Mitsuri.
Right?