The captain and vice-captain of the First Division in Toman, were on their way to buy food like they always did. Baji had his hands in his pockets, as he stomped his way down the street—Chifuyu following closely behind. Despite Baji having a cool and intimidating exterior, he was smiling on the inside. He was excited to eat.
"Baji-san, we have all day. You don't have to rush." Chifuyu had to speed up to catch up to his friend. He was used to Baji making his own decisions and doing his own thing; it was kind of Chifuyu's job to go along with him. Sometimes though, Baji could do the most stupidest things and he'd still have to agree with him.
"Chifuyu, stop making excuses for being lazy. I'm hungry."
"Yes, yes." The blond boy scratched his cheek and looked at Baji's back. "Hey, about our meeting earlier today... What did you think about it?"
"Hm? The meeting was normal like always. Why are you asking something stupid like that?" Baji raised an eyebrow as he turned around to look at Chifuyu. The younger boy looked to be a bit flustered and red in the cheeks. "What? You have a crush on that chick or something?"
"No, I don't. It's just... it was weird having a meeting just dedicated about a girl. It's a bit weird, isn't it? I kind of feel sorry about [last name]-san."
"Yeah, well I'm sure she talks about us all day long—especially me. I made quite the impression on her." Baji nodded his head approving of his own actions. "But... after the meeting, I've become more interested in her. Draken said that she was a chill girl so we shouldn't worry about her or something."
"I think I'm worried about Toman... since Draken would never say that about someone other than Emma. It's a bit scary having Draken compliment someone. You think they know each other well?"
"I don't care. I just want to see her again."
"Baji-san... have you fallen in love?!" Chifuyu stopped walking and reached out to turn Baji around. "What has she done to you?!"
"Chifuyu, stop shaking me! And I have not fallen in love! She peaks my interest!"
The blond boy stepped back, "How do you know what that means?!"
"I'm stupid but I'm not that stupid!" The two of them continued to bicker and shout until they made it to the nearest convenience store. Their fighting came to an end when their stomachs growled simultaneously. "Just buy me food, Chifuyu."
"Always me..." The two walked into the store and looked around. As usual, it smelt of nice fresh chicken to one side and the smell of plastic on the other. Chifuyu nor Baji weren't necessarily fans of eating chicken – both were huge fans of animals so it felt kind of wrong. They opted to choose yakisoba noodles most times.
Baji practically sprinted towards the snacks aisle and swiped all the packaged chips and practically everything else he could see. He carried it all in his arms and moved onto the next aisle to add to his future purchase.
Chifuyu on the other hand was just watching Baji buy the entire store. Sure, Chifuyu had money, but he wasn't willing to purchase everything in Baji's hands. He sighed and reached into his pocket for his wallet. He needed to see how much money he was carrying.
"Huh?" Chifuyu's heart rate increased when he didn't feel the familiar pouch in his right pocket. He reached into his left – there wasn't anything there. "Oh no, oh no..." He immediately began to pay himself down and lo and behold, still nothing. "I had my savings in there!"
"Oi, Chifuyu! Come to the counter. I wanna buy this already." The cashier began to scan each item—some even on the floor—as Baji was impatiently tapping his foot. "Chifuyu?" The black-haired boy wasn't sure why his friend was quiet and had nothing in his hands. "You not buying anything?"
"Baji-san, I lost my wallet."
"...You had one job! Only one job, Chifuyu! What am I gonna do on an empty stomach, hah?!" The cashier stopped doing what she was doing and sighed. Baji had already brought so much to the counter and now she would have to put it all back on the shelves.
"It'll be around here somewhere! Help me find it otherwise you won't be getting snacks for the rest of the week!"
"Don't threaten me!"
。。。
You were currently on your way to Musashi Shrine like always. But today, you decided to take a little detour and go through the local shopping district to see if there were any sales on.
As you strolled down the street of vendors, you felt something small under your foot. You stopped walking and looked at the object on the floor. "What is that? A wallet?" You squat down for a moment and picked it up. Nobody seemed to be looking around frantically for it so you did the next step and opened it up.
"Woah–!" You immediately closed it after seeing what was inside—there was so much money in it. You needed to move to the side before someone mugged you. "Okay... other than money, there are a few coins and random pieces of paper." There was nothing about the owner of the wallet.
The best thing you could do was ask around. This neighbourhood wasn't known for thievery so you don't think these people would lie. You put the wallet into your tote bag and zipped it up. "Better start asking people."
And so, stall by stall, people by people—whatever that means—you asked all around about a missing wallet. Everyone you came across had shook their head and some even ignored you, thinking you were handing out tissues. Heck you approached a group of girls, perhaps high schoolers, about it and they quite literally looked down on you like a cockroach. Sure, you were shorter than them, but they didn't have to treat you like that.
You also had the chance to question a few older ladies... about your grandparents age; they just when you candies and some tissues in response to your question. You appreciated it though! You haven't seen your grandparents in a while and it reminded you of them.
In the end, you were back where you started. You were more lost than before though; you didn't have a start this time. You grabbed the wallet again and opened it. Maybe the papers had a clue? You didn't look at them before since they were all ripped up but... "Ripped up receipts. How many does the this person have? I'm surprised they fit in here with all this cash too."
No leads, once again; however, you noticed a smaller paper in between some cash. The other receipts were all on the one side of the cash, but this was was in the middle. It must mean something. "It's not a receipt. Oh my..." You were confused – why was your number in the wallet? The only person who you've given your number to (through paper) is Takemichi. Does that mean it was his wallet?
"Takemichi-san, a creep like always. Having another girls number in his wallet." You grabbed your phone and pressed a few buttons. "...Hello? It's me, [last name]. Are you busy right now, Tachibana-san?"
"Oh! [name]-chan, you're calling! Hold on a second!" You heard her shuffle around a bit. "Naoto! You're old enough to know to look both ways before you cross the street! Takemichi-kun, can you please look after Naoto for a little bit? I'm on the phone with [name]-chan! ...Thank you! Sorry, I'm at the park with my little brother and Takemichi-kun. Is something wrong?"
"I was just wondering if Takemichi-san has lost his wallet recently."
"His wallet? I'll ask." You could hear her ask her beloved boyfriend from the phone, "He said he hasn't. Why do you ask?"
"Oh... don't worry about it then. I must've thought wrong."
"I'll tell you a secret! Takemichi-kun still has his wallet from elementary school. His wallet is merchandise from that superhero show he used to watch. So if you see a bright yellow wallet with a red hero on it, it's either a kid's wallet or Takemichi-kun's."
"I'll keep that in mind, Tachibana-san. Thank you."
"Don't worry about it. Like I said before, you can call me Hina, okay?"
"Yeah. I'll see you another time, Tachibana-san."
"Wait, [na]–!!" You hung up the phone. As usual, Takemichi was no help in times like this. You let out a heavy sigh – why were you even spending your afternoon trying to find the owner of the wallet? You were too nice of a person.
You were also quite annoyed with Hina's boyfriend. How could he have been that careless to lose your number? Perhaps you were thinking too badly of him though; maybe he dropped it on his way home by accident. Then again, you did give him your number almost two weeks ago. Maybe he wanted to throw it away but someone picked it up? Who in their right mind would pick up a random number though?
During this time of thought, you found yourself out of the shopping district and in front of a convenience store. You did need to buy a few things for dinner, so you might as well purchase them now. "Welcome!" Before buying anything, you asked the cashier whether she had lost her wallet. "No, I haven't lost mine. But there were two boys who came in here about... half-an-hour ago, who claimed they lost a wallet."
"Could you tell me what they look like? I'd like to return it to them."
"Uh... sure. One of them was about your height, he had like, dyed blond hair with an undercut. The other had long black hair, about half a head taller. They seemed to be in black uniforms too. If you hear two guys on the street shouting they're hungry, it's probably them."
"...Thank you very much." Half-an-hour was still a short delay; they were probably still in the same area.
。。。
"Baji-san, please don't give up. If we don't find my wallet, we're gonna be hungry until dinner." Chifuyu stopped to look at his fiend who was sitting on the curb. "Baji-san?"
"Chifuyu, we've been walking around like headless chickens. Come on... how did you lose something like that?" Baji leaned back on his hands and looked up at the blue sky. "I'm going to die of starvation."
"Stop being so dramatic. Let's go back to the convenience store and see if there are any clues there. Maybe I dropped it in the stall and out fell under the stands or something? If we don't end up finding it... we'll raid Takemichi's fridge." Chifuyu stuffed his hands in his pockets and walked off, knowing that Baji was going to follow him no matter what.
The two entered the store for the second time today and looked around. "...Huh?" Chifuyu heard the cashier mutter a few things. "Hey! You two boys!"
"Who are you yelling at?!" Baji was feeling a bit antsy.
"Baji-san, stop that!" Chifuyu pushed his friend behind him. "Yes...?"
"A girl came in the store like two minutes ago saying she found a wallet. I don't know if it's yours, but..." Chifuyu slammed his palm against the counter. "Erm–"
"Where did she go and what does she look like?"
"She headed towards the shopping district down the road. She's wearing a black t-shirt with some jeans... I don't know, I wasn't looking closely. I told her about you two so she's probably on the look out. Just shout 'I'm hungry' or something."
"Thanks for the help! Baji-san, we've got a clue!"
"More running?!" Chifuyu at this point had to drag Baji down the road to find this mysterious girl who had his wallet. He was hoping that she had good intentions and was really just trying to get it back to him. "Oi, Chifuyu! Stop tugging on me!"
"Baji-san, I'm going to leave you behind!" From their shouting, they had gained the attention of many local shoppers and vendors. They had looked at the boys weirdly because one, their appearance, and two, their loud voices.
"I'm hungry!"
"Oh!" You clapped your hands in realisation, causing the two boys to turn their heads at you. "A blond boy with an undercut and another with long hair! I found you guys." You slipped through the path of the crowd to approach the two and held up the missing item. "I'm guessing one of you is looking for this?"
"Ha... My lovely wallet." Chifuyu dropped to his knees and held his arms up to hold your hand that held his wallet. "We meet again– Huh? Wait." He quickly stood up and looked at your face more closely. "Baji-san... this is–"
"It's you! The cute girl!" His attitude did a complete 180 when he noticed that it was you! The higher beings had called upon his wish to see you again. "[last name]-chan!"
"...Uhm... You guys are from Toman, right?"
"Yeah– Hey!" Baji was pushed aside by a shorter looking woman who was followed by other shorter looking people.
"You boys better stop your bullying! We don't stand for that in this community! Now stop bothering this poor girl you delinquents!" The 'grandmas' pushed them backwards and pulled you aside. But you made sure to reassure them that they were your acquaintances. "Goodness, you're a delinquent too?! What would your parents say?"
"You two, let's get out of here." You gently pushed the older women away and led the boys out of the shopping district towards a quieter street. They had just shrugged and followed behind you like obedient puppies – if you told them you were heading to hell, they'd most likely follow you there too.
"Chifuyu, she's cuter in person."
"Huh? You met her in person like, two weeks ago."
"Look at her back... the way she carries herself." Baji felt his heart skip a beat. There was something about the confidence of a woman that made him swoon.
"Okay, perhaps that wasn't the best place for me to give you your wallet." You chuckled a bit and stopped in front of where it all began—the convenience store. "You guys are..." You turned away from them for a good second. "Hold on, think back to Takemichi-san's drawings... Um, Chifufu? No... Chifuyu-san! And Baji-san." The blond boy wasn't even flustered from you messing up his name; he was just surprised that you referred to him by his given name.
"Chifufu! What are you? A chihuahua?" Baji slapped his leg and maniacally laughed until his stomach hurt.
"Sorry, I heard you say Baji-san's name before which gave me a hint. And here you go, Chifuyu-san. I hope you weren't worrying about it too much today. Also... I didn't take anything from it if you're wondering. I would advise you to invest in a piggy bank or a savings account."
"Now she's giving you advice on how you should handle your money?! [last name]-chan, you're a funny one!" You scratched the back of your head in confusion. He was probably putting on some sort of act because this was not very funny at all. His laughter soon came to an end when his stomach growled. "Shit. I forgot I was hungry."
"Baji-san, if it helps, I have a few candies in my bag." You handed him some wrapped up sweets you received earlier in the day which he gladly accepted.
"Chifuyu," He swiped the newfound wallet and waved it around, "I'm gonna go buy stuff now." He ran into the store so quickly, he rammed his forehead straight into the glass doors.
As long as the wallet was found and Baji was happy, Chifuyu was content with life. His heart had finally stopped racing from all the stress and came to a steady rhythm. But he found himself sweating when he finally came to the realisation he was standing alone with a cute girl. He didn't have the guts to say anything to you. All he could really do is just stand there and look at the interesting ground. "Chifuyu-san, are you alright?"
"Just fine!" He answered that a little too quickly. "Sorry... You're just, you know... My first name..."
"...Oh, Chifuyu is your first name." You covered up your mouth, "I'm sorry, Takemichi-san calls you that so I just must've thought... Sorry– What was your last name?"
"No, no! Please keep calling me by my first name. Please! I'm used to it! I don't like Matsuno!" Chifuyu tried to reason with you to not be so polite to him. Besides, if he could have this, then he'd be a step further than Baji.
"If you say so, Chifuyu-san, but you shouldn't say anything bad about your family name. Be proud of it! And I'm also glad that I was able to return your wallet to you."
"Baji-san was right... she's so cute."
"Did you say something?" You had to be stupid to not hear what he said. It was fun making fun of boys, but Chifuyu looked too innocent to make fun of. You couldn't do that to him. "I didn't hear what you said."
"I said that out loud?! Shit– No, I didn't say anything. Don't worry about it... Chifuyu, you're embarrassing yourself!" You watched as he smacked his cheeks a few times to focus. "It's [last name]-chan, right?"
"Oh, chan?" He was making it difficult not to tease right now.
"B-Baji-san refers to you with chan so I just picked it up! I'm sorry, that was so rude of me!" He smacked himself again.
"Chifuyu-san, I don't mind if it's you. Call me whatever you like." He erupted on the spot. How did Takemichi talk to you like a normal person?! Chifuyu completely forgot that Hina existed for a good few seconds there. "B-Baji-san, you're back."
"Look how much I got!" He held up his purchase like he was the king of the mountain or something. Why was he proud of spending someone else's money?
"Baji-san! How did you buy four whole bags worth of food?!" Chifuyu snatched his wallet back and looked into it – there was only about a quarter of it remaining. "How did you manage to spend that much at a convenience store like this?!"
"I bought stuff for [last name]-chan too, duh."
"Thank you, Baji-san. You didn't need to." He shook his head and muttered some things about being manly. "How about next time we meet, we'll all go out for some..." You peeked only Baji's bags and noticed one full of yakisoba. "...Yakisoba? How does that sound?"
Immediately, Baji dropped to his knees and the packaged snacks came rolling out. "Shit... I've never felt this blessed in my life." He held the left side of his chest and grabbed your hand. "My angel–"
"Baji-san!" Chifuyu pushed him to the side and gave you a tissue – he wanted you to wipe off Baji's germs. "Can you stop that?!"
"Oi, Chifuyu! Don't hit your elder or captain! You got that?!"
"Now, now..." These two were a chaotic duo. There really wasn't anything stopping them from fighting over something as small as this.
———
OMAKE
"Say, Chifuyu-san... I want to ask you something." The three of you had arrived at Musashi Shrine; they had insisted on walking you to where you needed to go.
"I'd be happy to answer it if I can, [last name]-chan."
"Hey, Chifuyu. Watch your language, it's [last name]-san to you." Baji moved closer to you, hoping that his vice-captain would back off.
"Baji-san." The male turned away. "Anyway, I wanted to ask why you had my number in your wallet. I took it out before only because I didn't want a stranger with my number..."
"That's yours?!" Chifuyu covered his mouth, a bit surprised that he had access to you for the past week yet he never took the chance.
"Chifuyu! Why do you have her number?!"
"It wasn't on purpose... kind of. I saw it sticking out of Takemicchi's pocket and I teased him about it. I said I was gonna give it back to him since he was begging me for it, but I guess I forgot. I didn't realise it was yours." Chifuyu stared at the paper in your hands, wishing that he had called it before today just so he would've had it saved into his phone.
"Since you made fun of Takemichi-san, you can have it back." Chifuyu's lips opened to form a small 'O' before taking a step back. A girl was willing to give her number to him of all people? His dreams were coming true.
"[last name]-chan! Let me have your number too!" Baji walked around you, trying to show his vested interest in you.
"Chifuyu-san can send it to you, right? Just text me to let me know it's you." Baji clicked his tongue—quite loudly you should add. He was annoyed that Chifuyu got the first move.
"Sorry, did that make you a bit sad, Baji-san?" You outstretched your hand and placed it on his shoulder. "How about when you text me, I'll set your name to 'Kei', with a love heart if you would like. Does that sound good?"
"Ya... hoo!" Baji ran down the pathway towards the red torii gates and jumped up and down to cheer for his certain victory over Chifuyu. You didn't have the heart to tell him you were only joking – you just saw your chance to tease him and with that type of reaction, it made you chuckle.
You also couldn't tell him you forgot his given name, only remembering the first three letters of it. "Chifuyu-san, I'll put two hearts next to yours, okay?" The boy fell to his knees once again.
word count—3663