The bell rang and you were so relieved. Today was for your final exams and you felt like you were going to be stuck in the classroom forever. But it was the last one of the day, so it was a blessing. In all the madness you almost forgot you had to attend school. Honestly, pretty disappointing.
Students filed out of the classroom but you waited outside of the door for–
"I totally just blew that!" It was Hakkai who sounded very confident in his abilities to fail. As he wasn't allowed to be in Toman, it's not like Taiju could stop him from attending school.
"You probably didn't do that bad." Souya walked out behind him. You three had just finished the science final. "All you had to do was pay attention in class."
"Yeah, I didn't do that very well!" He groaned while walking next to you. "How do you think you guys did?"
Souya shrugged, "I don't know. I fell asleep while studying last night." Go figures that one of the times he needed to stay up, he knocked out.
"I don't usually study, I hope for a miracle." You told the boys. "But hey, now they're out of the way, we can finally look forward to our break."
It was a relief you finally got some time to really relax and not have to keep worrying about school on top of everything else that was happening. November just needed to end. Too much had happened in the last month and you were going to attempt and take it easy.
The three of you turned out to the main lobby where the entrance and exit of the school was located. Students happily leaving, or some in a similar situation like Hakkai and panicking over how they believed they did on their final exams.
"Y/N! Y/N! Y/NNNNN!" The male voice was getting louder from behind you. The familiar voice at that. Turning around, you were met with none other than Chifuyu. "Y/N!"
"I did hear you the first three times." You informed him with a giggle. "Did you need something?"
"Uh yes, well actually– it's kind of– um. Um..." He stuttered over his words. Chifuyu looked over at Hakkai and Souya and went to speak again but found himself having a hard time.
"Hey man," Hakkai put an arm over Chifuyu's shoulders. "If it's personal just say that, right Angry?"
"Uh– yeah...?" His response was more questionlike than an answer.
Chifuyu sighed, "Sorry..."
"No big deal! Angry, want to get a snack before I leave? I can't exactly be seen with you out in public..." He leaned in closer, "Taiju has spies everywhere," he whispered. He didn't even reply before Hakkai dragged him off down the hallways to the vending machines by the cafeteria because those had better options.
After they left, Chifuyu turned to you, "I just had a quick question. Do you think I could borrow Baji's sash? Um– well not borrow, but. Ah damn it, I sound like I'm trying to steal it from you..."
"His sash?" You echoed his request. It was hard to remember what he was talking about because you didn't ever really check his clothing attire. Or really his room after he passed. There was a faint memory of one time you thought you might've resembled some type of sash. "Are you talking about the white bands?"
"Yeah! It's a symbol of honor. However, since he's not here anymore, I was thinking." He knitted his brows, it appeared like he had a lot of his mind. "Baji didn't want us to stay hung up over his death. He wanted Toman to keep moving forward, right?"
You nodded. "That he did."
"Takemichi is now the first division captain. I think you might've guessed but we're planning on taking Taiju down. He needs every ounce of faith because when I tell you Takemichi will cry first and ask questions later I mean it." Chifuyu laughed. "But seriously, I want to see him succeed."
Now you were starting to understand why he wanted this to be a private conversation. "I get it. Chifuyu, if my brother would have lived long enough to properly meet Takemichi, he'd agree with you on this. However, I actually don't have it, it's probably still in his room."
Chifuyu tilted his head, "I thought he would've given that to you..."
You shrugged, "It's made for the captains plus the presidents rights? I'm neither of those. So it doesn't make sense for me to have it." The two of you walked out of the school in the direction of your apartment building. Before you made it too far, you made sure to text Souya and Hakkai that you had left in case they came looking for you afterwards.
———————
You unlocked your door and stepped inside with Chifuyu behind you. It was strangely quiet inside. You knew your mom was out at work, but you didn't even hear the familiar meowing of Soba when you walked in.
"Soba?" You called out not knowing what she could possibly be doing right now that was so interesting right now instead of greeting you at the door. "Probably hiding somewhere..." you mumbled while walking further in.
You hadn't really been in Keisuke's room since what happened. Probably trying to avoid memories from flooding your head when you did. Your mother had been in though to straighten things out, but you don't believe she took anything out.
Opening the door you saw how his bed was made and everything had been picked up off the ground. "Yeah she's definitely been in here. I've never seen this place so clean before." It was like walking into one of those pre furnished rooms when you go searching for houses.
You opened the closet and noted that there were a couple of boxes labeled 'reading', 'things for school – return', and 'other important things– DO NOT THROW AWAY'. From the labels it was clear what you were looking for could be found in.
"Reading?" Chifuy squinted his eyes to make sure he was seeing it correctly. "Didn't know he had enough books to fill a box."
"Probably a bunch of manga. There's probably something in there you'd like." You told him while peeling open the box. This one was heavier than the others so it was probably full of all his miscellaneous items.
The first thing on the top of the stack was a photograph. It looked very familiar and you recalled back to the time when you, Chifuyu, and Keisuke were walking home from school and made fun of Chifuyu's hair. The picture he snapped from Chifuyu's phone.
"Hey look at this," you turned around and showed him the picture.
"Is that when you guys were trying to tell me my roots were showing?!" He took the photo in his hand and scanned it over. "IT IS!"
"There's a couple more in here. Two more of you and him." You passed him the pictures but held a particular one in your hand. "Aw, you guys are holding hands in this one!"
Taking that one in his hand he immediately started to explain. "It wasn't like that! Every captain and vice captain has a picture like this. Except for the twins, they have a different one."
You had to wonder why every division had a picture of them holding hands. As if they were trying to preach peace and love before fighting in the streets. Maybe it was some type of Toman ritual.
You continued to go through the box while Chifuyu reminisced looking at the pictures. There were a bunch of more pictures with him and some without them. You didn't know he actually printed out a bunch of the photos from his phone after he took them, but apparently he did.
What caught your attention was that the pictures that were probably taken a few months to a year ago looked like they were in pretty good condition. The actual photo paper couldn't have been much older than a month.
Something told you why that was, but you kept quiet and kept searching. After pushing more things aside you finally came across the sash you had been searching for. You pulled it out and handed it over to Chifuyu, "this is it, right?"
"Yup." He took it from you and held it in both his hands. "Are you sure it's okay for me to have it?"
You started to reorganize the box but didn't take back the pics you gave to Chifuyu. "Yeah, you said it was for Takemichi right? He's the first division captain, so it's only right. Plus it's not my decision where it goes."
He still seemed sort of hesitant. "You're positive?"
"Chifuyu, just take the damn sash." You assured him it was perfectly fine. "It's a symbol of honor. So it's only right that it gets worn by the right person. You worry too much." You stood up and looked over the other boxes in the closet. "You're just like–"
When you went to turn back around, his arms found their way around you and he pulled you into a hug. His head was in the crevice of your neck. Surprised, you put your arms on his back.
"Thank you," he started. "I know it sounds sappy as hell to say but I'm happy that you're here."
Maybe it was sappy, but having a friend like Chifuyu made it easier to go through times like this. Because he knew what you were going through more than some of the others might've. "Stop it before you make me cry."
"Alright alright!" He laughed and pulled back. "I'm going to end up making myself cry. I feel like Takemichi."
Both of you laughed and Chifuyu picked up the pictures. "What are your plans for the rest of the day?"
"Who knows? Probably just chill out. Do you have any life threatening plans?"
"Well..." He stood back up and neatly stacked the pics in his hand. "We've teamed up with Kisaki, and Hanma. Now we're going to go talk to a member of the Black Dragons to get information on Taiju."
For some reason that didn't surprise you much. "Go figures... How do you think that's going to go?"
"Horribly." He answered quickly. "I don't wanna work with fuckin' Kisaki. In fact, it was Takemichi's idea, and he's lucky I like him or I wouldn't have agreed to it. All I know is if Kisaki or Hanma pull some sneaky shit, I'm ending things and kicking their asses."
Now that sounded more like Chifuyu. Everyone took him for being on the nicer side when in reality you thought he was just a wolf in sheep's clothing.
"Don't let them double cross y'all. That is the last thing anybody needs right now. And for the love of everything don't get killed by that man. Taiju's arm is probably the size of your entire body."
"He's not gonna kill me." Chifuyu smirked. "Just 'cus he's big doesn't mean he'll win."
"Those are fighting words 'Fuyu."
"Hell yeah they are."
He left and went back to his own apartment while you continued to search around for Soba. She is a damn good hider, but your apartment wasn't even that big, so that's what ended up confusing you. You thought you had searched under every surface possible but still couldn't find her.
"Well that's not good..." You mumbled while standing in the middle of the living room. She hasn't been with you for a month and already went missing.
As soon as you lost most of your hope, your phone buzzed and lit up. You looked over on the table and saw a notification from Chifuyu.
Fuyu 😾
Fuyu 😾
I found Soba btw
Me
She's already escaping...
Keep me updated on the Soba vs Peke J fights
Fuyu 😾
Should I bring her back?
Me
She went up there, she can make her way back
-----------------------
Now that you knew she was safe at least, you were at ease. Something about Soba running up to Chifuyu was in character to her. Even if she's never done it before, it made sense.
You were about to go and sit down but a knocking on the door stopped you from doing that. At first you were hesitant to open it, because nobody really knocked on your door besides Chifuyu and he clearly had other plans. You looked through the peephole just to make sure.
Seeing who showed up was an unexpected surprise. Opening the door for him you stood to the side. "Not used to seeing you here, Draken."
Draken tucked his hands into his pockets. "I would've called before stopping by, but I wasn't really thinking. I thought you should come with me to...a surprise."
"You showed up without notice just to take me to a surprise place? What is this, a date?"
He scoffed, "Nah, I just wanted you to come with me somewhere."
"Can I trust you'll bring me back in one piece?"
"Just get ready."
"That wasn't a yes." You tilted your head.
"Yes, now get ready."
----------------------
Draken insisted he drive you there on the back of his bike. That was sketchy because he said it was to, 'make sure you don't run away.' A lot of this just sounded like he was going to kidnap you and kill you,
The location you were driving to looked unsettlingly familiar. You remembered why because Keisuke has been brought here a couple of times as a 'warning.' A warning to what could happen to him if he didn't change his ways or whatever.
"No way you're bringing me here. Turn this bike around, Draken."
"Y/N, give it a chance. It's one of the very few days visitors that aren't family can go in." He said back to you. "1 hour."
You bit your tongue and watched the building come closer into view. Draken was going to have to forcefully push you in this place if he wanted you to make any type of move.
He parked his bike not too far off from the door and hopped off first. Turning around he waited for you. "Don't be stubborn."
You wanted to give it a chance. But something was pushing you away from the detention center. With a reluctant nod you followed him inside. At the desk there was a small sign that said 'Family and Friends are welcome today and tomorrow.' with friends underlined.
Draken did the talking with the man sitting in the chair at the front. "We're here to see Hanemiya Kazutora. His friends." He spoke calmly. The older gentleman nodded and wrote on stickers to attach to your shirts.
"Third floor. Probably still in his room, I'll ping and make sure he moves to the visitor area. Elevator is all the way down to the left."
"Thank you, sir." Draken gave you one sticker and stuck the other one on his own shirt. Before you put it on you read it. Basically it just had Kazutora's name and floor. Followed by the start and end time of the visiting hour.
Draken pressed the elevator button and you both waited for it to come down. "Do you know why I brought you here, Y/N?"
"No, but I sure as hell wish to know."
He understood your hostility and didn't really want to point it out, but he felt it was better to put the fire out now rather than later. The elevator opened and you both stepped inside. "After what happened, I think it's good for there to be healthy closure." He said as he pressed the button to the third floor.
"Healthy closure," you repeated slowly. "You could've brought anybody else here."
"But I didn't." He responded. "I saw the look in your eyes on Bloody Halloween. You were ready to kill him."
"Hell yeah I was. So was Mikey, I don't see him around though." The elevator door opened and you let him go first. "Maybe his invitation got lost in the mail?"
Draken ignored the sarcasm in your tone. "Mikey said what he had to say already. I gave Kazutora a message from him. It was to not kill himself in here."
You kept your silence about that. It hadn't occurred to you that Kazutora had actually been considering that while he was locked up. Draken stopped at the corner and looked down the hallway. There was a large room with a couple of chairs. It was plain and bare. Sitting in one of the chairs, was the familiar blonde and black haired teen.
"I can't." You spoke up while Draken started walking but you stayed where you were. "I can't."
He looked over his shoulder, "I didn't want this to be a hard thing for you."
You were able to understand what he wanted to get out of this. But you weren't really feeling it. "Kazutora is part of the reason why–"
"Y/N. He died because he finished the job himself. Wasn't that to prevent any feeling of hatred that you feel right now?" He walked back and put a hand on your shoulder. "Listen, you can walk out whenever you want and wait for me downstairs. But I just want you to try."
He eased you into walking down the hallway and each step you took that was closer you could see Kazutora's face clearly. You listened to Draken's words and forced yourself to try. When you reached the room, his head turned towards you guys.
There was a guard standing in the room. She had her hands by her side and dressed in a police uniform. "Since your visitors are not related to you, this does have to be monitored. Friend rules are tighter; no touching, and any conversation must not be deemed inappropriate. I don't care too much about profanity, but use your best judgment."
Draken took a seat first and signaled for you to sit next to him. Hesitantly, you did. Draken had a smile on his face and leaned forward on his knees. "It's good to see you again, Kazutora. How's life been treating you?"
He kept his eyes on the ground but occasionally lifted them. As if he was checking to make sure you guys were real and not a trick of his mind. "I mean, I'm getting by. Same old routine."
"That sounds like it's not too bad I hope." Draken carried the conversation. "Everybody hopes you'll be alright, I hope you know that."
He twirled his thumbs around each other nervously. "I doubt it, I don't blame them if they wish the worst for me. I um... surprised to see you here too, Y/N."
You had a dictionary of snarky responses to that comment but you decided not to use any of them. "Surprise as in good or bad?"
"In the middle I guess." He cautiously answered. "Last time I saw you, I remember quite clearly that you told me I was going to regret what I did."
"Along with many other things, yes I did." You crossed your arms. "I hope you know how sick you are for sending me literal pictures after what you did. Why the fuck would you drag me out there to see that happen? Begging for me to come watch my brother die, did you have a damn death wish?"
The officer from the side seemed like she was about to step in before Draken raised a hand to stop you from going off. "Cool off."
You shut your eyes and took a deep breath. "I just want an answer. Why would you do that? You two were so close. After Shinichiro died, he wanted to stay by your side. He talked about you all the damn time. God he didn't shut up about you sometimes. And as soon as you got released you just–" You found it extremely difficult to talk all of a sudden.
Draken folded his hands. "I brought Y/N along with me because I felt it would be good for both of you. To get emotions off of your chests because it'll be a while before you see each other again. I didn't want misunderstandings to happen again when Kazutora got out."
Kazutora didn't know what to say. "I'm sorry. I really am. I should've known he didn't betray me. I've been abandoned so many times in life I just assumed the worst."
Kazutora's head hung low. The same thing that he did when you were on top of him threatening his life. You don't remember if he ever even looked at you once during that. "He can't even look me in the eye." You stood up from the chair but Draken grabbed your arm. "Let me go."
"Hands off." The officer spoke. You thought the rule was just to not touch Kazutora, not no touching at all.
"Can you just wait–" Draken tried to tell you.
"I am so sick of waiting. There's days when I wake up and I still wait for him to come back through the door. Where I've waited for him to come out of his room after sleeping all day. Waited for him to get out of class so we could walk home but he didn't. He won't." You pulled yourself out of Draken's grasp. "I'm not going to invalidate Kazutora's trauma and his experiences but I just can't do this right now."
Kazutora clutched his hands tightly. Finally gaining some strength to not look at the ground. Still, he couldn't meet your eyes. "Y/N."
"Please don't." You shook your head. "Stay alive Kazutora. Once you're released, then come and find me." You really wanted to try and give this forgiveness a shot. It was a struggle, and you were nowhere near ready.
"I will, I promise."
As you walked out the room and left Draken and Kazutora you turned back just to see if your guesses were correct. What you saw proved that Kazutora also wasn't ready to reconcile.
He was still looking at the ground.
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Soba vs. Peke J, who's winning? I got money on Soba.