Chapter Text
In ‘Hikaru’s’ mind everything was a beautiful experience. Humanity was endlessly complex, and he’s certain that without Hikaru’s memories, he would be completely lost.
‘Hikaru’ treasures them like the blessing they are. They help him navigate social situations so instinctively! To the point where no one has caught onto his little lie.
His phone has also been an extremely helpful device. It’s so refreshing to look something up so easily! Especially because ‘Hikaru’ couldn’t ask a lot of the questions he had to people. His confusion over topics would be a dead giveaway that something was seriously wrong.
Pondering for hours using Hikaru’s memories came to a full stop once he fully figured out his phone usages. Being so ignorant was embarrassing at first. ‘Hikaru’ felt like such a grandpa being so new to technology.
In almost every other aspect, he felt like a child being introduced to things for the first time.
The world held a magic to it that even actual children had grown used to. Honestly, ‘Hikaru’ was incredibly jealous. He had to tone down his reactions for things he wanted to marvel at day in and out.
To ‘Hikaru’, even negative feelings felt interesting and worthy of wonder. They’re rare for ‘Hikaru’, but it proved that he was adapting towards humanity! They’re supposed to be semi common in his peers, so he should probably take them to heart.
The gap between him and the concept of humanity varied on the day. Sometimes, he woke up and he truly felt like Hikaru; instead of some creature wearing his skin. It was so very easy to melt into the body’s flesh. To make his heart beat and his lungs breathe in a normal, human way.
On those days, ‘Hikaru’s’ senses were dull and ordinary. Typical for any boy his age. Nothing supernatural called out to him, and ‘Hikaru’ was perfectly content with his humanity.
He would follow the set routine Hikaru built up for years. He would go to school with Yoshiki, go to club afterwards, be polite to his mom, and never do anything too radically weird.
Humanity was far away for ‘Hikaru’ some days, and all he could be was the buzzing beneath his skin. He could feel his real self peering out of the humanoid senses gifted to him.
‘Hikaru’ definitely fucked up too much for Hikaru’s human ego. He would ask bad questions, do ‘strange’ things, and talk too little or too much.
Sometimes, people would glare at him. Especially Yoshiki when he got something backwards. ‘Hikaru’s’ thankful he doesn’t care too much about it, but he can’t help but wonder what excuses Yoshiki’s giving himself about how often it is he messes up.
He can feel the shame accompanying those actions, but it doesn’t weigh heavily on him. ‘Hikaru’s’ only ego is the one he adopted from Hikaru, so it only truly mattered to him when he made an awful mistake. Otherwise, it was a gentle nudge on towards what he should be doing.
‘Hikaru’ is hopeful that a few more months of being human will sharpen him up.
Unfortunately, today was one of his bad days.
If you ask him, ‘Hikaru’ had started off very well this morning! As soon as he woke up, he made sure all of his organs were functioning properly, and that his skin wasn’t freezing due to it.
‘Hikaru’ often forgot to keep up his body when he decided to sleep.
It felt strange to lay there in the morning, and to be as cold as he was when he first inhabited this body. However, manually pumping blood throughout his body woke him up pleasantly. It felt like warm water lapping at the insides of his skin and flesh.
‘Hikaru’s’ insides were condensed enough that it didn’t affect most of his body, but there was a distinct cold sensation anywhere near his chest cavity. It was the only place his blood refused to hug back to life.
‘Hikaru’ still didn’t sleep as long as he used to. His body didn’t need the extra hours for growth and bodily reasons now that his insides handled everything. It was still nice to try though, it made him feel distinctly relaxed in a way that being awake didn’t quite achieve.
Consistently, he woke up four hours after he went to bed. Cutting his overall rest time in half. Today with this extra time in his schedule, ‘Hikaru’ worked on some of his homework! It wasn’t due till next Monday, so that meant ‘Hikaru’ was ahead on work finally!
The main struggle of today was Yoshiki.
In general, ‘Hikaru’ was absolutely delighted by Yoshiki! Having a best friend was so special to Hikaru, and he could see why. Yoshiki was irreplaceable, even to him.
His soul was so bright, and the creature in him wanted nothing more than to bask into its kind light. To spread out like a lazy cat, and curl into the warmth Yoshiki had to offer.
A part of ‘Hikaru’ wanted to lock Yoshiki between his teeth and whip him around like a rapid dog. Maybe to gnaw on his fingers until the puncture wounds from his teeth would trickle blood down his throat.
Doing that would definitely go against anything routine Hikaru wanted him to do though. ‘Hikaru’ had to try his best to be normal, and keeping to it was the easiest way to mask his true nature.
No boy his age wanted to hurt their best friend, so ‘Hikaru’ would not. He didn’t want to seriously hurt Yoshiki, but the urge to do something about this feeling was incessantly strong. It licked from ‘Hikaru’s’ eyes to his cheeks and teeth, all the way down to his fleshy fingers.
Today was a bad day because he was so very close to stepping from the routine. ‘Hikaru’ wanted nothing more than do squeeze his best friends face, and wrap his entire human body around him twice.
This was all because Yoshiki had followed through on wearing their old best friendship bracelet! He had been texting ‘Hikaru’ late last night, and had apparently found it under his bed.
At first when first emerged from the mountain, he wondered if Yoshiki didn’t need as much sleep as a normal teenage boy, or if he was waiting up for something. However, he was learning that Yoshiki was a bit of a night owl, especially on weekends where he could get away with it.
‘Hikaru’ asked him about it once in the wee hours of the morning. Yoshiki had told him that sometimes his thoughts are louder than he can handle, so falling asleep is difficult sometimes.
‘Hikaru’ doesn’t seriously get it. He controls every thought in his mind, even the unpleasant ones are completely his own. However, he does enjoy Yoshiki’s extended company when he does stay up, so it’s not his place to poke at him.
Hikaru’s memories told him that they had made those bracelets when they were around ten years old! The notorious in between age where it’s ‘okay’ to do childish things, but still be mostly conscious of your actions.
To be completely honest, after turning twelve Hikaru might’ve thrown his away for being too silly. The young boy was very eager to grow up, and was very influenced by his peers or just by his personal insecurities.
‘Hikaru’ wishes he had his bracelet still, and told Yoshiki that last night.
it clung tightly around Yoshiki’s wrist. Not enough to leave a mark, but his wrist now was a lot larger than they expected making them.
It had a very simple design. Especially compared to the ones girls typically made at that age. ‘Hikaru’ enjoys the feminine maximalism that they have, and he distinctly remembers the popular, little girls wearing as many as they could to symbolize status amongst classmates.
However, Hikaru’s younger self was very against the loudness for himself. He wanted the simple claim over Yoshiki as his best friend, and to ward him off from any other school kid. Though, it was unlikely to happen in the first place, they were obviously very close.
Being around ten, boys in his class made fun of each other for pink, purple, jewelry, sparkles, and childish things. Which meant it could be none of those things in little Hikaru’s world.
So, the bracelet is thin. It’s a simple design of string woven around a white bead. Hikaru had a matching one with black, and he used to wear it frequently. Its string was a little frayed, but overall it held together nicely.
Seeing it on Yoshiki lit a type of fire underneath his skin, and he wasn’t sure where it was coming from. It could be Hikaru’s, completely his, or a mix of the two! This body’s feelings and instincts wete too intwined with the monster’s at this point. It was extremely difficult to tell them apart, especially when they were happening in the moment.
It was also strange to feel because ‘Hikaru’ existed in a third space. He was no longer the complete being he used to be. He didn’t have uniquely ‘monster’ feelings anymore, but he also didn’t have uniquely human feelings. The overlap blurred into what ‘Hikaru’ truly was now, and not who he pretended to be.
This unrelenting desire for Yoshiki was unfamiliar to him, but not foreign enough to take him out of routine. He could pull himself together. He could be Hikaru still.
He watched Yoshiki’s soul flutter beneath his skin, zoning out slightly so they’re more perceivable to his human senses. He might be able to perceive souls with his other human senses too, he’d just have to be so very close.
Hikaru wouldn’t be that close to anyone for the prolonged period of time needed to test that, so ‘Hikaru’ should forget the urge of curiosity.
Would Yoshiki’s soul taste like anything? Would he be able to taste it with his human tongue, or would he have to use his insides?
Would his soul whisper his secrets, or hum out a melody? Or would it be quiet like the boy himself could be?
Yoshiki’s so beautiful and he is ‘Hikaru’s’ best friend. Yoshiki is his now too, and not just Hikaru’s. Was he able to prove it to anyone but himself? Would the difference between the two even matter if Yoshiki never caught on?
Would Yoshiki like knowing it was ‘Hikaru’ instead of Hikaru, or would he want to be ignorant?
Does ‘Hikaru’ really care about what Yoshiki wants, or does Hikaru? Should he care now that Yoshiki is now ‘Hikaru’s’ best friend too? Thinking about the logistics behind Yoshiki’s desire conflicted with Hikaru’s wish, so it was unlikely Yoshiki would ever get a confession from him.
Yoshiki’s feelings are human, and all of his actions are organic. They stem from the sensations he perceives, that then connect to the billions of neurons stuffed into his brain. Yoshiki doesn’t need a routine like Hikaru does. Yoshiki can stray from his day to day actions, but ‘Hikaru’ cannot.
Yoshiki is so human so wonderful. He wants to pull Yoshiki so deep into his insides that his flesh dissolves. He wants to cradle his soul gently until they’re mixed together.
That wasn’t a Hikaru thought, and if he was human, it would’ve shocked him back to attention. However, because he wasn’t he needed to real himself back into the present.
‘Hikaru’ shut his eyes hard, hard enough to show static. He left them like that, and forced himself to focus on nothing else but the light smudges. Eventually, his ears eventually tuned into the teachers lecture.
‘Hikaru’ had a hard time not thinking about things. Even now, as he was more used to having a human thought process. He would dictate rules for himself to follow, and then he would think about those rules, which lead to him eventually breaking them.
He read somewhere that to stop thinking about a topic, you had to distract yourself rather than focusing on not thinking about it. So it was a lot easier to handle in high sensory places.
He cracked his eyes open slowly, forcing them to drift away from Yoshiki. He could still ‘feel’ his soul.
Their teacher standing at the front of the class seemed to be wrapping up. Meaning that, ‘Hikaru’ missed most of the lecture because of Yoshiki’s bracelet. He’s now a little glad he and Yoshiki only shared a few period together. ‘Hikaru’ might be a little more lost if he had more opportunities to daydream about his best friend.
He should probably do some research on his phone when he gets back home. ‘Hikaru’ really doesn’t want to do anything stupid that could jeopardize their relationship. Yoshiki is his person, and he would be immensely uncomfortable if ‘Hikaru’ let his monstrous desires leak into their friendship.
He hears his classmates scrambling out the door, and senses Yoshiki’s bright, warm soul creeping towards him. He’s so sweet, waiting for him to pack up to get out of class.
He feels a lighthearted flick against his skull. “Did ya pass out Hikaru?” The sudden contact sprung ‘Hikaru’ awake from his daydreamy daze, more than he could with his own will.
“Nah just resting my eyes!” He refuted Yoshiki’s tease with a smile. His claim definitely sounded like utter bullshit, but Yoshiki only rolled his eyes.
“Yeah whatever, pack up your stuff fast so we can go home. I don’t know if it’s gonna rain later.” Yoshiki says, but he doesn’t seem to be in too much of a rush. ‘Hikaru’ doesn’t really know how Yoshiki feels about the rain, so he might not care too much about being swept up.
“Okay okay I hear ya!” ‘Hikaru’ exclaimed, finally batting Yoshiki’s prying hands away from his hair.
‘Hikaru’ liked Yoshiki’s hands a lot, but he’s not really sure why. They were longer than his own, and his pinky’s were slightly bent. He would occasionally play with them when they were alone, and clasp their palms together.
Obediently, he cleared his whole desk into his bag. Letting everything fall in unorganized. Later, he’d probably have to fish the pencil out of his bag like a fool, but he didn’t mind if it meant he got out of here sooner.
He swung the bag over his shoulder, and stood up next to Yoshiki. He was standing close, he must not have backed away when he had the chance to. His soul radiated warmth through his body, and ‘Hikaru’ felt himself lean slightly into it.
‘Hikaru’ focused his eyes up at Yoshiki. The other boy had a few inches of height on him, but not enough where it was uncomfortable to make eye contact.
He couldn’t understand why his bangs covered half of his face. It made it harder to stare directly at him. Yoshiki could be a little antisocial sometimes, so maybe that was a reason why he kept them so long.
Hikaru’s memories warn him not to be too confrontational about it. Yoshiki had always been insecure, and it wasn’t nice to point it out to him. He always hated his moles.
‘Hikaru’ thinks they’re adorable, and doesn’t really get the issue. Beauty standards themselves are a little hard for him to wrap his head around. It’s probably more difficult because he doesn’t experience attraction like Hikaru did. A lot of them don’t even make sense culturally, no less biologically.
To point one out in particular, high heels. Why are girls expected to wear high heels if it’s a male beauty standard to be tall? He looked it up once and it said some bullshit about posture. But logically it doesn’t make any-
Yoshiki interrupted his thoughts by waving a hand in front of his face. “Hello, you in there anywhere?” Yoshiki cut himself off by smiling a little meanly. “No wonder you fell asleep in class with ya being so spacey.”
“Hey, you’re acting like this class isn’t boring as hell anyways! I doubt I missed anything at all.” The lie easily spilled from ‘Hikaru’s’ lips, Hikaru found this class more boring than watching paint dry.
However, it was really hard to bore ‘Hikaru’, he found almost everything interesting and worthy of some degree of attention. That doesn’t mean he was insanely good at school by any means, but he was doing a little better than Hikaru.
Yoshiki rolled his eyes, but didn’t choose to disagree with his comment. Which meant ‘Hikaru’ was right! “D’ya have practice today Hikaru? I can’t remember if it got canceled for today or not.”
“Yeah, they canceled it earlier this week cause of the rain. Did ya wanna go out to town quick before it starts up?” ‘Hikaru’ casually added.
Hikaru really liked soccer practice, but honestly, ‘Hikaru’ doesn’t really care for it. The club is fine, but he’d rather do silly things like this with Yoshiki ten times over. Even if it’s ‘boring’ things they’ve done a hundred times before.
Yoshiki’s in the photography club too! But their club hours are way more flexible. They only meet like once a week, so poor Yoshiki will wait for him to get done with it before walking home together.
When ‘Hikaru’ first came down from the mountain, and started to get back into normal life; these moments with Yoshiki grounded him. ‘Hikaru’ doesn’t know if anyone else ever would be as accepting towards him as Yoshiki is. However, sometimes he can be a real nag when he’s being too slow about something.
“You’re talkin like there’s anything to do in town.” Yoshiki huffed at his excitement. He hated Kubitachi so much sometimes it was amusing.
“I want to get us new matching bracelets! I feel bad just letting you wear your old one. I want us to match again.” ‘Hikaru’ complained, reaching out to tap the white bead on Yoshiki’s wrist.
Yoshiki’s cheeks went slightly pink, and he pushed ‘Hikaru’s’ head down towards the floor. His fingers were buried in the short strands of ‘Hikaru’s’ hair. “Yeah, and where the hell would they sell those? I think you made the last ones.”
Yoshiki reaches out and touches him a lot like this, but not really in any other way. ‘Hikaru’ likes it though, he can admit that it makes him want to be physically closer. He’s not sure if Hikaru ever had that desire.
“Oh shit really? Then I’ll make us new ones! I’d still need to pick up some string or ribbon or whatever.” ‘Hikaru’ looks up at Yoshiki, his position towards the floor is a little awkward. His grin is wide though, ‘Hikaru’ isn’t sure if he should try containing it a little, but Yoshiki doesn’t seem to mind.
Yoshiki let go of his head, and ‘Hikaru’ folllows it back up to maintain eye contact. ‘Hikaru’ likes to maintain eye contact. It means that they are both looking at only each other.
Yoshiki doesn’t really seem to share that, half of the time he looks away pretty quickly. At first, it used to kind of bug him, but as long as Yoshiki’s comfortable he doesn’t mind.
“We should probably start heading over there now then. I don’t wanna be home too late tonight.” Yoshiki reluctantly agreed.
“Yea that’s fair! Im probably gonna work on them once I get home. Fair warning, they might not be any better than the one you have on. I’ll have to watch some tutorials to even do the basic ones!” ‘Hikaru’ laughs.
—-0——
“Sooo what cha thinkin: ribbon, string, or some of the premade ones? Those aren’t really ‘friendship bracelets’ though.” ‘Hikaru’ said, air quoting the ‘friendship bracelet’ part. The bracelets up front were the cheap bands, and they didn’t appeal to him.
The entire way there ‘Hikaru’ had been glowing with enthusiasm. The wide grin he’s been wearing could probably be carved into his face, and he’d be okay being a jack o lantern forever.
Yoshiki’d been giving him weird glances the entire time. At first, he’d been self conscious about it, and tried to tone himself down a bit. It didn’t last long, ‘Hikaru’ had a really hard time containing his excitement. Especially when it was his own excitement, and not something for show.
However, Yoshiki didn’t say anything to his face, so he was choosing to ignore the looks. He trusts that if his excitement was really a big deal to Yoshiki, that he would say something about it.
“You’d really buy the ribbon here?” Yoshiki asked, jutting his finger towards the frilly kind they had.
“I mean yeah, it’s a little girly but it’s whatever. I don’t really want this pink one cause the pattern looks cheap. But if you want it Yoshiki I’ll put up with it.” ‘Hikaru’ said cheekily, stretching out the words in his last sentence. The lace attached to that specific pink one was janky and unappealing.
“Just get the string. The ribbon might fray badly.” Yoshiki sounds a little weird when he says it though, so ‘Hikaru’ looks up. Quickly, he glances across Yoshiki’s face, and he doesn’t find anything obviously wrong.
Yoshiki had an awful time keeping a straight face. Especially when he felt strongly about something, so it was typically easy to read how he was feeling. That isnt to say ‘Hikaru’ has perfected the ability to differentiate emotions, but he’s been getting better!
“What colors are ya thinkin?” ‘Hikaru’ asks, returning his eyes back to the limited supply the store had.
“I don’t really care, just not orange.” Yoshiki shrugged.
It was a little strange for Yoshiki to say that, he can’t really remember him having a distaste for orange.
“Hmm maybe we can match it to our eyes! I saw a trend with that a while ago.” ‘Hikaru’ hummed out. It was a little corny, so he watched Yoshiki’s reaction carefully.
He didn’t have a favorite color to pick from. Hikaru had a few he preferred, but singling one out didn’t make sense to ‘Hikaru’. It might’ve if he grew up with the idea implanted in his brain. Personally, colors were all just the way human eyes perceived the world around them.
Which is why that trend stuck out to him for this! In a lot of cultures, there was a special focus on eyes rather than any other sensory organ. Specifically, eye color was a reoccurring cultural trend he saw on his phone.
It was fascinating that people from around the world could share their experiences in ways that even he could understand! Culture and social norms are something that ‘Hikaru’ is still getting used to, so he assumed eyes were something that could be swapped out with like a nose.
They have their own special appreciation though! Most people refer to them as the jewels of a persons face, or the window into their soul. Which is crazy to say because they’re not even remotely connected, but it’s a cute thought!
The color especially is important to people. Even if it’s a genetic trait, almost everyone wears the color of their eyes confidently! After becoming aware of that, ‘Hikaru’ started to really notice people’s eyes. That’s probably why he kind of has a staring problem now.
“You’re the one buying it Hikaru. Get whatever you wanna make the bracelets with.” Yoshiki says nonchalantly.
“You’re no fun Yoshiki! Im forcing ya to wear this with me, so you should have more of an opinion. Who knows if ya secretly hate my eye color.” ‘Hikaru’ nudged Yoshiki’s shoulder with his own. Prompting a reaction out of the other boy.
“Yea your eye color is one of the worst things I’ve ever laid my eyes on.” Yoshiki said in the same tone of voice. He was obviously being sarcastic. Sometimes, ‘Hikaru’ misses some of Yoshiki’s social cues because of it, but he’s been doing a lot better on picking it up lately!
“Stop being a dick!” ‘Hikaru’ pokes back at him. The real Hikaru might have insulted him right back for the fun of it, but ‘Hikaru’ didn’t feel the need.
“You’re the one who told me to have more of an opinion.” Yoshiki teased, smiling a bit because he definitely knew what a little bitch he was being.
“Your rights are revoked.” ‘Hikaru’ sighed, if Yoshiki wasn’t going to be direct, he’d have to try and remember his favorite color. Which is a conversation they haven’t had in years, and he’d feel way too guilty if he got it wrong.
“Your eye color is pretty Hikaru. I wouldn’t mind doing that.” Yoshiki relents, his voice carrying not even a lick of a joke.
Oh, Yoshiki doesn’t often compliment him so directly! He must really think his eyes are pretty! Pathetically, he felt his cheeks redden a little.
Yoshiki’s opinion probably holds the most value over him, and in second it’s Hikaru’s mom. He doesn’t feel the same kind of social pressure that Hikaru did, so Yoshiki’s opinion holds more weight over him than before. If Yoshiki says his eyes are pretty, they must be.
He recovers quickly, and completely ignores the red sting in his face. “Okay, but you’re gonna hold the string options up to my eye and judge for accuracy. I’m thinking between these three.” ‘Hikaru’ motions towards the lighter blue color options they have.
Yoshiki bends down over the string baskets, he grabs two of them, and squashes them on either side of his face. “Hmmm I wonder…” he says with a tease in his tone. ‘Hikaru’ widens his eye to maximum capacity of a better view of his irises, and Yoshiki smiles at his effort.
Yoshiki had a nice smile.
“Honestly, neither of these match that well, and the other one is no where near your eye color.” Yoshiki sighs, and ‘Hikaru’ can tell he’s thinking about their cruddy town.
“Just pick the one that matches my vibe better then.” ‘Hikaru’ says easily, and feels a little affronted at Yoshiki’s immediate confused expression.
“What the hell does that mean?” Yoshiki mutters, looking between the two colors and ‘Hikaru’. A grin cracks against his face again, seeing that Yoshiki’s confusion was genuine, and there wasn’t a hidden insult.
“Which color resonates with my soul Yoshiki be honest cuz there’s a right answer.” ‘Hikaru’ lies, he wants to see how serious Yoshiki will take this. He doesn’t care at all which one Yoshiki picks.
“Shut up.” Yoshiki picks the one on the left, and puts the other one back in the basket. He looks over at ‘Hikaru’ like he expects him to confirm or deny his choice, but doesn’t directly ask about it.
He picked the lighter color. Does that mean anything in specific? Wait, does Yoshiki assign people colors in his head, or is this an ask only thing? Maybe he should ask him later.
“It’s my turn now! And I already know what one I’m picking. There’s only one thats really near your eye color. Im still gonna double check though.” ‘Hikaru’ explains while he grabs the deep gray color from the yarn selection.
‘Hikaru’ held it up to Yoshiki’s face, but didn’t touch him with it. He analyzed the colors between the two quickly, and knew this is as close as he was going to get within the options here.
Yoshiki’s long bangs slightly got in the way, but not enough where ‘Hikaru’ would move them out of the way. “Hmmm yeah this’ll do!”
“I think I might just try to do those fancy braids on these, and maybe add beads like I did before if I find any at home. The beads here are way too expensive.” ‘Hikaru’ nodded to the price tag of the randomized bead tubs. They aren’t even that cute to be that expensive.
‘Hikaru’ appreciated living in a small town the same way Hikaru did. There was a distinct magic of being able to experience modern technology, but be able to hop back into nature whenever!
The wildlife surrounding their village also was a wonder to him. It was a little baffling to him that there were complex ecosystems everywhere that most people disregarded. Everything, even the bugs Yoshiki was interested in, had a unique place in it.
However, the major downside was that there was no accessibility anywhere! If he wanted to buy nicer string, there wasnt a local craft store he could stroll into. There was one aisle in the supermarket dedicated to the grannies that liked to knit.
‘Hikaru’ knew if he really wanted to match their eye colors, he’d have to beg his or Yoshiki’s mom to drive them to some mall or craft store a few towns over on the weekend. However, ‘Hikaru’ is awfully impatient and really wants to make these bracelets tonight!
He smiles up at his best friend, and he can feel his eyes crinkling around the edges. “Did ya wanna checkout now, or did u wanna grab something else?”
“Uhmmm I think Kaoru wanted me to grab something a bit ago, but I forgot what it was. I’ll ask her really quick.” Yoshiki pulled out his phone, and ‘Hikaru’ watched his thumbs tap the phone screen.
‘Hikaru’ huffed out a laugh hearing the immediate ping of a text back. Kaoru must’ve been bored and already on her phone. “She’s asking us to pick up some nail polish and those spicy chips.”
“The ones I tried last time I was over? those were nasty.” ‘Hikaru’ sticks his tongue out in a mock gag. The flavor tasted like tire tracks when Yoshiki told him to eat one. He did it without even thinking about it too.
“I know, shes developed such a bitter taste in food lately.” Yoshiki agrees with a pinch in his face. No doubt that he’d seen the worst of it.
“It’s gonna get crazier from here on out. What are ya gonna do when she asks you to pick up some uh-“ ‘Hikaru’ paused for a beat too long. What’s a gross food? “Something really crazy.”
“I know dude, the cashier here already gives me a hard enough time already.” Yoshiki complained, showing more distaste for the woman rather than Kaoru’s disgusting snacks.
“Oh yeah she’s so talkative! I feel bad for her son, the entire town knows almost everything about him because of her.” Even someone like ‘Hikaru’ remembered bits of information about his personal life seeing him in the hallways.
“I hate that everyone knows everything about each other here. She always gives me so much shit about my family.” Yoshiki says it like she doesn’t bug him that badly, but ‘Hikaru’ can see past it.
“I get it man, but don’t worry! you’re smart enough to get the hell outta here as soon as you can.” ‘Hikaru’ tried to reassure him. Hikaru wasn’t too great at comforting people either, but ‘Hikaru’ knows he should work on being better at it.
Yoshiki had it a lot harder than he did. Everyone here hated his mom off the bat for being a foreigner, even though shes only from Tokyo. It’s only gotten worse now that his parents fight loud enough for everyone to hear.
‘Hikaru’ wanted to wrap him up into the safety of his room, and keep him there until his parents got their shit together.
‘Hikaru’s’ kind of glad his family is a little uninvolved. He doesn’t have to worry all that much about preforming for their expectations like Yoshiki has to.
Yoshiki shouldn’t worry about preforming for him anymore. Sometimes he’ll watch Yoshiki about to do or say something, and his whole demeanor will crumble after he catches himself.
‘Hikaru’ desperately wants to know what he’s hiding. He wants to know everything about Yoshiki.
Unfortunately, he thinks Yoshiki is having one of those moments, as his eyes glaze over before turning away. “I think Karou wants purple, pink, and black nail polish.”
“Ooo fancy! Any specific shades or do we guess?” ‘Hikaru’ asked, despite knowing there might not even be all those colors here.
“I don’t think she minds that much.” Yoshiki hummed, setting off towards that aisle.
“I feel like if I were to paint my nails I would totally be such a stick in the mud about it. Like what if the blue doesn’t go with the pink, and then you have to wear it until they all chip off?” ‘Hikaru’ mentioned, knowing he was giving Yoshiki a hard time for not asking.
He was also a little desperate to change conversation topics off the land mine ‘Hikaru’ stepped on earlier. He didn’t want Yoshiki to be upset longer than necessary.
“Are you planning a gender reveal on your nails or something Hikaru? I think Karou paints them all one color at once anyways.” Yoshiki raised his eyebrow.
“Yup and you’re the baby daddy Yoshiki! I didn’t tell you because I didn’t want you to dump me. I mean how was I supposed to tell you Im pregnant, and with twins too? We’re still in high school, but I don’t think I’ll be able to support them both on my own-!”
Yoshiki clamped his hand firmly over ‘Hikaru’s’ mouth at his loud exclamation. His face pink with embarrassment.
‘Hikaru’ poked his tongue out from his lips and coated Yoshiki’s palm in his saliva. As a kid, Yoshiki would get so grossed out when he did that.
He can still see the disgust in his features, but he doesn’t immediately retract his hand like he would’ve. The joke had gotten old years ago, but it was still a fair shot at getting Yoshiki to leave his face alone.
Yoshiki, being an evil jackass, decided to slide his spit soaked hand across ‘Hikaru’s’ face to wipe it off.
“Hey thats gonna give me pimples!” ‘Hikaru’ frantically tried to get the moisture off with his school shirt. ‘Hikaru’ had the ability to never get a pimple ever again if he wanted to, but it was a fun part of the teenage experience to be hormonal!
“You’re the one who decided to lick my hand!” Yoshiki smiled, and ‘Hikaru’ couldn’t find it in himself to pretend to be mad.