A Taste of Forever (Katakuri x Reader)

Chapter 33 - Mending

A/N:

Wordcount:  4983 (let's just roll with my lack of control over chapter size)

You leaned against the doorframe as you waved after the little pinkette, watching her skip down the long corridors before you eventually turned back inside your room.

Along with Anana's disappearance the heartbreak returned.

You sighed deeply, almost painfully and definitely audibly, as you shut the door and rested your forehead on it, letting it join your hands that still lingered on the wooden door even after the quiet click of the doorlatch had ceased echoing in the room.

Originally, the sigh was supposed to alleviate some of the tension that had been building up in you. Yet, all it did was for the air to make room for renewed sorrow.

Suddenly, you felt very...lonely. You had been in your suite alone plenty of times, but it had never felt quite as alien, uncomfortable, and lonely as it did right now. What had been filled with your dramatic play and giggles just a few moments ago, was now replaced by a hollowing silence. Without Anana's distraction, you couldn't run away from your pain any longer.

You wanted to fix everything, you really did, but the wounds were still fresh. Chewing on the insides of your cheek, you debated whether you should call him and get things over with, or whether you wanted to allow yourself some more time to plan things through. However, the longer you paced through the room and tormented your cheek, the more you could feel the sadness and anger that had just disappeared during your play session with the youngest Charlotte return.

I'm getting nowhere like this.

Taking in a deep breath, holding it, and exhaling it slowly, you dug in your pocket for your baby Den Den Mushi.

You felt your heartbeat pick up at the prospect of talking to Katakuri again, but before your anxiety could overcomplicate the entire situation again as it had in the past, you dialled his number, and after only a single ring, you watched the Transponder Snail take on Katakuri's signature scowl.

He didn't say anything, and neither did you. The only thing that gave away that he had really picked up were the open eyes of the snail and the collective inhale you could hear from the other end of the line.

Of course, it was dinner time.

Swallowing your anxiety down, you held the baby Den Den Mushi up to your lips.

"I'm ready to talk, mochi man," and with that you hung up again.

You groaned loudly into the empty room as you pushed the Transponder Snail back into your pocket. Was it too cold? Or not cold enough? Should you have said something else? Or not called at all?

Great, now I'm overthinking things.

To calm your unproductively racing mind, you walked over to the windows before flinging them wide open, and you immediately enjoyed the soft breeze that greeted you. The air was warm, yet refreshing, and the strange combination of saltiness from the sea and sweetness from the town below invaded your senses. Breathing salted caramel would surely feel the same.

You soaked in the tranquillity of the moment, feeling the evening air lace through your hair and sweep across your skin tenderly as your eyes watched the sun sink further behind the sea. Only the crown of it still peeked over the blackness of what was once blue, and with a quick glance towards the sky, your lips curled into a smile.