Vivid Bad Squad Polyship (Slow Burn)

Busy Mall Bookstore

Kohane tied up her right pigtail. It had a habit of becoming sloppy after a couple of hours, but she didn't mind since she was just going to one store. She got dressed and ready in fifteen minutes flat. She giggled at herself at the way she had gotten all dressed up for her date with Akito the day before. It'd been about a week since he'd confessed to her. She still almost couldn't believe it.

She said good-bye to her parents and set off to the train stop. She was going to the downtown mall, praying they weren't sold out like her local bookstore was. She sighed. She said she 'almost' couldn't believe Akito and her were dating because, once the others joined in, the affection he had been giving her cut off instantly, as she would expect from someone who wanted a secret relationship. She laughed.

"Shinonome-kun really surprised me..." she mumbled to herself. She got tired of waiting for the light to change and crossed anyways. The train station was so close...

However, he still treated her with a strange amount of protection, more than she'd seen from him before. Her heart fluttered a little as moments flashed in her mind from the date. Softly smiling, she didn't notice the ticket man tapping his fingers.

"Listen, young lady, your humming is great and all, but are you gonna buy a ticket?"

"U-U-WAAH! Y-y-yes! Right. O-o-one, please..." She handed him her pass.

She sighed as she sat in the ladies-only car. Was it always this hard for her to gather her wits? She was on a mission to get a copy of the new Seventh Cicada novel!

...

"Why are you gay?" He heard the crackle over the phone line.

"Who says I am gay?" Toya scoffed.

"You. Are gay," his older brother announced. He was pretty much the only family member that bothered to talk to him much, but he was still talking smack 24/7. "That book is for homos and chicks."

Toya took a deep breath.

"...?"

"Go fuck a French chick somewhere, nii-san. Toodles."

"! That's not eve--" click Just because there was an ongoing storyline between the main detective and his assistant doesn't mean Seventh Cicada novels were just for girly people. He put on his shoes and did up the laces nicely to recover from his insult to his brother. After some singing practice, he was going to the bookstore downtown for the newest one. The fake-out villain death left everyone on the edge of their seats and the newest copy was selling like hotcakes.

...

"--Eep!" No more fantasies, this was the final step to the novel: the store. It burst with all likes of life (and a giant robot??) buying things ranging from the latest self-help book to the prize she searched for in the back of the store. "Pardon me. S-sorry!" Hark! In the back corner, surrounded by smuts (despite not being sexual). She dashed. A metal wall materialized in front of her head. "Kya!"

"A-are you alright?!" Its vicious teeth glowed when it spoke. Wait a minute... this was Nene-robo! She took her hand from her head and bowed slightly.

"Yes! Hello, Kusanagi-san. Just startled. Crowded places aren't really my thing..."

"Right?!" They stood there for a moment. Kohane's hand inched towards the book. "... Can I have that book, please?"

"Eh? This?" She acted surprised it was popular. The soulless eyes only stared at her. "R-right! Here!"

"Thank you." They looked at each other expectantly. "I'll go now." Kohane nodded. Nene-robo made their less than graceful exit. Kohane watched in near awe, fading away from the bookstore for a brief moment.

A hand touched hers on the shelf. "Bwaa! Sorry!!" 'Why does this keep happeningggg?!' Her hands curled tightly into herself. She hesitantly peeked to see if the stranger had left. Silver eyes. "A-Aoyagi-kun... Hello."

He stared at her a little longer. He didn't expect to see her at the store. Kohane went into hamster-about-to-get-eaten-by-a-bird mode. She rarely entered such a severe mode, only when she was overwhelmed and scared. His eyes narrowed by a millimeter. 'Am I blocking her way? Did I greet her? ...Oh.'

"Hello, Azusawa-san." This was a full ten seconds of silence before he so much as greeted her. Obviously, Kohane was still frozen in place. Toya didn't wanna just leave her there. His mouth scrunched slightly. "...Fancy meeting you, here."

For once, Kohane saw his facial expressions in her heightened state of awareness. It was a miracle. Was this what Akito could see when he looked at him? How long did he have to look at him, centimeters away, to get this good at reading him? She took a deep breath and looked at him a little longer. He glanced back-and-forth between her eyes and she saw his throat move slightly as he swallowed. He was getting worried, too. She touched her slightly less sweaty hand to her mouth. A slight smile had formed.

'I don't think I'd mind looking at Aoyagi-kun as much as Shinonome-kun does...'

Kohane broke out of her stone statue and looked at his hand where it lay on... the last copy of Seventh Cidada vol 3?!!

Her smile was instantly gone, and her lips wavered a little, hand reaching for the book. He looked between her and where she was reaching and connected the dots.

He passed the book to her. "Here."

"You're a fan of the series too, though. You take it, Aoyagi-kun..."

He had a slight pout now, Kohane noted. "No, take it, you were here first."

"Will you get in trouble for having it? What if we keep it in SEKAI?"

"No, no." It wasn't actually a half bad idea. "You can have it..." Kohane scowled, interrupting his head shaking.

"Aoyagi-kun." His eyes widened. Her tone was very different all of a sudden. "I really thank you for this. But, I want you to read it, too. Let's share it. I'll leave it in SEKAI for you, okay?"

That wasn't actually a question. "Uh... Right." She took the book and shot a hesitant "goodbye" at him before leaving. He breathed out and tried to absorb what had just happened. Then she came back with a more introverted expression. "Oh, Azusawa-san. You're still here."

"Mm." Her left sneaker pivoted in place. "I was wondering if you'd like to go get smoothies or something..." She glanced away to avoid his reaction. "I want to treat you, as thanks for yesterday."

Toya's hand found its way above his heart. It felt warm. The girl in front of her. He had a habit of disregarding those around him, but he could feel himself opening up with every considerate word from the shy girl.

Her eyes widened. Toya was blushing? Did she say something embarrassing... The hectic environment faded away as she focused on him again. "Yeah." He gave a slight smile. "That sounds nice, Azusawa-san." She took a small step back, jumping away and apologizing to a small child she bumped into. "...Is this alright, though?"

"Hm?"

"Uh, never mind." They walked to the front of the noisy bookstore, weaving through the crowd. He strung his words together through continuously getting lost. "I know you're repaying me, but it almost feels like I owe you one for some reason."

"Oh!" She stopped in her tracks. Someone shoved past her. "Sorry! I-I didn't want to make you feel that way at all, Aoyagi-kun!"

"No, no." He almost reached for her hand, to keep people from pushing them both, but he paused and gave up. "I appreciate you doing this for me. You didn't come off that way at all."

They reached the line. Toya awkwardly stood halfway behind, halfway beside her. He silently looked down at her. 'I... I messed up my words a little, but she doesn't seem to mind.'

Book acquired. New side mission: Hang out with Toya and see if he agrees with the correct opinion on the villain.