To Be A Scrapper (Suzuya Juuzou)

Chapter 66/2

"You're gonna fall if you keep doing that." Shin's tired voice called over the energetic girl's singing.

He was laying with his back pressed against his bed and legs facing the ceiling, providing a makeshift floor for Emi who was balancing herself on the soles of his feet. The girl had incredible balance to be able to hold herself up and even dance a bit as she sang. Once in a while Shin would reach out to steady her, only for his hands to be slapped away when Emi managed to regain her balance.

"~They wrap you up in a big white sheet, from your head down to your feet."

Emi mumbled, a goofy grin stretched across her face as she wobbled on Shin's feet.

"~And the worms crawl in, and the worms crawl out, in your stomach and out your snout."

"Stay still." Shin grumbled when the girl jerked forward, almost falling off his legs. Emi muffled a set of giggles against her hand as she manged to steady herself.

"~And your eyes fall out and your teeth decay. And that is the end of a perfect day-"

Much to Shin's surprise- note the sarcasm- the girl tumbled forward, this time completely falling off his feet as her head slammed down against his nose. The coal haired boy muttered a few profanities under his breath, making sure they were quiet enough not to be heard by the girl, before bringing his hand up to his nose.

"Ouch." Emi mumbled, rubbing her head as she pushed off Shin's chest, straddling his waist instead. "You were supposed to catch me!"

"You weren't supposed to attack my face!" He countered, making Emi sigh.

"Shin is very no fun."

"Emi doesn't know how to properly order a sentence."

The girl's bright giggle rang through the otherwise quiet room, making a fleeting smile appear on Shin's lips before Emi jumped slightly, making his eyes widen and his jaw clench.

"I did it on purpose!" Emi rolled her eyes, but furrowed her eyebrows as she noticed his expression. "What's wrong?"

"It hurts." Shin muttered and suddenly she realized what position she was in. Quickly scrambling off his stomach, she pulled his shirt up to reveal the long stretch of messy stitches lining it.

"I'm sorry, I forgot-" she started, but was cut off by a dismissal from the coal haired boy.

"I'm alright. It doesn't hurt that much."

"If Ryuu saw me doing that I'd probably be dead by now." The girl nervously laughed, making sure the boy in question wasn't in the room before tracing her small index finger across de jagged line were the skin tore.

"You think you'll be okay for the scrapping ceremony?" She whispered.

"Yeah, I'll manage." The boy answered, flicking her forehead as she looked straight into his electric blue gaze.

"It's going to be different from our usual missions." Emi warned, leaving Shin's wound to focus on his gaze instead.

"Scrapping is competitive. If they consider you a threat to their reputation, you can be sure they'll try to kill you."

"Should I be scared?" Shin furrowed his eyebrows.

Emi bit her lip. Her small fingers played with the hem of Shin's dark blue shirt as she thought about it.

"Well... scrappers, they don't care about anything other than giving a good show. We're entertainers, we'll stop at nothing to show people blood and guts flying around. That's what we were taught to do. The flashier, the better."

Shin couldn't help shifting a bit at the girls sincerity, suddenly feeling a bit wary of the upcoming situation.

"New scrappers are uncommon. Most of us have been serving the restaurant for years. New people trying to steal the attention away from us are not well welcomed. People will try to kill you Shin."

Emi sighed as Shin furrowed his eyebrows. Were scrappers really that dangerous for Emi to warn Shin to be cautious?

"Jiro is an idiot who will probably want to make friends with them, which will end up in him getting slaughtered too. Scrappers aren't there to make friends, they're only looking for a messy kill."

A barely-there smile twitched on the corners of her lips. Just thinking about it made excitement bubble up inside her. Emi really hoped she'd get to scrap at the ceremony. It had been a long time since she'd done it, her body was craving for the adrenaline of it.

"Ryuu will have no problem. I bet he'd make an amazing scrapper." Emi laughed. "Although he might need to loosen up a bit more."

"Ryuu? Loosen up?" The coal haired boy almost burst out laughing, disbelief clear on his features.

"He could be considered a top tier scrapper in no time, but Ryuu analyzes his opponent completely when he fights."

"And that's bad?" Shin shot her a confused look.

"To be a scrapper, you need to feel. You need to have a strong intimacy with your weapon and opponent. Thinking will only cut off the flow of emotions."

Emi grinned at the boy.

"Being a scrapper is harder than you think. It's not just senseless killing, its an art."

Shin remained silent, his only action being a slow nod as he trailed his own fingers across the jagged lines of his torn skin. The wound was nowhere near healing. It hadn't even begun sealing get, which made the skin have a strange color along the edges. 

His gaze traveled toward Emi and the makeshift cast wrapped around her leg. He thought back to the Hiiragi mission, and how the girl barely even felt the snapping and shattering of her bones.

"How does your leg feel?"

Emi blinked, looking at the cast before shrugging.

"Sometimes it aches a bit, but I'm fine."

"You're a strong girl, you know that?" Shin smiled, making Emi beam up at him.

"I am! I can take on anything!"

And they began laughing softly at first, such an innocent and wholesome sound resonating through the entire room until it got contagious enough that even Shin had started laughing hard, covering his mouth with his hands in an attempt to muffle the noises.

They didn't even know what they were laughing about, but even if it was just for a split second both of them felt like their situation wasn't as grim as it seemed. It somehow felt like they could make it, like they really could take on anything.

Oh, how wrong they were.

~~~~~~~
DAYDREAM DAYDREAM!
*cough*

Hello guys! So here's another update! I don't know if I'll be able to update again this week or the next, because school is literally killing me. I'll try to update as soon as I can!

Thank you all so much for the love you guys give me. Your support means the entire world to me!

TRIVIA: Who's most likely to:
1. Have a one night stand
2. Drink until passing out
3. Get kicked out of the bar

A- 1.Ryuu, 2.Shin, 3.Jiro
B- 1.Shin, 2. Jiro, 3. Ryuu
C- 1. Jiro, 2. Shin, 3. Ryuu