▸xWITH no one xxx▸xMOOD tired and hungry xxx▸xLOCATION heading out of the house xxx▸xCLOTHINGmorning winter wear
x x x x x x x x x x x x x x ✧
Though he had been awake for the past fifteen minutes, at the very least, he still felt little motivation to get out of bed - or move, for that matter. It was much too early to be up, especially considering how he'd been up for a good portion of the night before. Daichi didn't think he would ever fully settle into the sleep schedule, but it was a necessity of the job.In fact - as he half-heartedly adjusted the layer of blankets tossed over his person, he reluctantly acceded to the fact that he was hungry. He hadn't had much of a dinner, and he'd been much too tired to rummage around for something to eat when he'd returned home. While the main festivities may have ended, there were always people who liked to go out for a drink or two.
After five silent minutes more of convincing himself that there was really no sense in laying about for any longer, Daichi dragged himself out of bed. The air was particularly cold and for a moment, he might've just gone and hidden under the covers but that was not the most adult like course of action. Instead, he wandered over to the bathroom to try sluggishly working his way through some semblance of a morning routine.
Dressed in nothing but sweats and a hoodie, Daichi headed for the kitchen with the anticipation of a meal. He tugged the hood over his head before leaning over the fridge door; peering in though, he was more than a little unhappy albeit not surprised, that there was really... nothing to eat. Sighing, he straightened up slowly, stretching out his back delicately before shutting the fridge door. This was one of the downsides of living alone, he supposed. Then again though, it was the perfect opportunity to go out for a hot breakfast. He resigned himself to returning to his room, to dress more properly for going outside.
A few extra layers of clothing later, Daichi stepped out into the brisk morning cold, locking the door behind him. He stared absently out at the houses, the trees, the walkways that stretched out before him. Gods, he felt as if it had been eons since he'd been here, but nothing had truly changed. It was eerie that way, he supposed. As if things were ... stuck, in some period of time that moved differently than the rest of the outside world.
That was in part, why he had decided to come back here though, wasn't it? Of course, while it might have originally sounded like a plan, it really wasn't and now that he was here, Daichi wasn't sure how to go about doing - anything. Most likely though, the key to resolving that would be figuring out just what it was that he was looking to resolve. It wasn't really possible to put together a puzzle when the pieces were missing, after all.
Shaking his head, he was about to leave, nearly missing the little scrap of paper that'd been wedged on the doorway. He knelt down for a moment to snatch it up, before starting down the path out of the small house he lived in, trying to mentally go through the choices of breakfast nearby.
About four words into the sentence written out on the paper though, Daichi found his attention shifting entirely towards its meaning. He could tell promptly enough that it was Sora's - one of the few people he was actually comfortable with-'s writing, and while he commended her go-getter nature, he was also quite sure the idea of tossing snowballs at each other so early in the day was not on his morning list of things to do. He hated the stuff too, so the idea of being pelted with it was not really the most appealing. Coincidentally though, he made a mental note to send her a text in the next little while - he was still within the estate though, and thus still within a danger zone, though his own place was somewhat out of the way of the main houses.
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Her alarm had long since gone off, but she dared not to actually stir. The Sohma doctor had no desire whatsoever to face the cold world that she lived in. No. She didn’t want it. Asako covered her ears and curled up a bit tighter into a ball, if you ignored things sometimes it was like they weren’t there at all. Yet, that wasn’t he case then and there. It continued to ring, louder, louder, until she got up and hit it as hard as she could with her hand. It stopped and she covered an eyes with her hand and closed them. Once, long ago, this world was so beautiful. Yet, that wasn’t the case then and there.
Asako went to her room’s window and pulled back the curtains, which allowed blinding light to come forth and hit her eyes. She flinched and closed them once more. Grabbing her glasses and putting them on helped just the slightest when she pulled the curtains once more. Yawning, the doctor lifted up her phone and scrolled through messages that she had preciously exchanged with another Sohma, the rabbit. Both of them were struggling after a run in with an outsider. They were hurt, and getting relief through unsafe methods. Part of her wanted to text him but she didn’t. It was too early to try and communicate.
Instead, she changed into her some normal attire, in particular it was a sweater dress, a deep maroon with a simple black belt that went well with her black boots and black leggings. Around ner neck dangled a long silver necklace that had a simple silver key on it. It was a necklace obtained long ago from the one and only person that she could say with confidence that she had truly loved. Honestly, wearing that necklace sometimes sincerely helped her to get through the day. Perhaps one day, perhaps, she could find it within herself to love once more.That was for another day, and certainly not that day.
Asa turned towards the other bed in her gigantic room and walked towards it. She threw open curtains over the window nearest it and smiled down at the sleeping figure. "Arisu, get up. It's getting to be late in the day. I'm heading out for a while, but when I get back, I better see you up and working on your winter break homework, all right?"
As she stepped out into the snowy world beyond, she shivered and closed the door behind her. Taking long strides through the snow, she began to make her way towards the main gate. Perhaps if she could just blend in with the crowds of normal, non-cursed people, she would start to feel more… alive. Maybe her problems would slip away, maybe the scars and fresh cuts on her arms would look less real.
Asako planned to get that far, but didn’t make it. As she went past the houses that the more… distant sohmas lived in, she saw him. As always, her heart skipped a beat and her anxiety started to kick in. Pounding in her head, she felt as if it would be best to run, but her body did otherwise. She just stood there for a few moments and stared at him Daichi Sohma. Oh god. Why ? He would have noticed her already, noticed the fat that she had stopped moving just to look towards him. So, she did something simple to get herself to stop seeming like such a big, stupid idiot.
“Good Morning, Daichi-San.” Asako said, giving him a small nod. “Have a good day.” Those words that escaped her lips hurt, just as much as the razors that often times carved out the insides of her wrists. “Be sure to bundle up, and of you don’t feel well, please do pay me a visit.” On the inside, though, she begged and prayed that he wouldn’t dare do that. She wouldn’t know what to do if he actually DID end up stopping by!
▸xWITH asako xxx▸xMOOD more awake - agitated xxx▸xLOCATION heading out of the house xxx▸xCLOTHINGmorning winter wear
x x x x x x x x x x x x x x ✧
Silvery wisps of breath rising up into the skies, Daichi paused for a moment, before moving to pocket the little slip of paper into his jeans in favor for his smart phone. With an expertise that came with familiarity of use, he tapped out the pass code and sought out his texts; there weren't any new messages,so instead, it listed out the most recent ones. Mainly, from a coworker from last night, and from a friend that was demanding to know why he hadn't called him up to do something since he'd come back to town.
Deciding it was better to do things now rather than later, Daichi looked up Sora's name. He wasn't one for winter - anything really, but he didn't want to leave her hanging.
TO: SORA
Morning. Be careful with ur game, even snow is dangerous. See you.
With that, he closed the app off and returned the phone to the back pocket of his jeans, vaguely wondering if this cold would potentially be enough to damage it. At the very least, it could drain the battery, and that was always a hassle, especially since he wasn't the type to keep the charger on his person. He'd been told more than once that that wasn't that uncommon or bad of an idea, but still.
Daichi had just made it to the set of paths that converged from the main and surrounding houses into the one that would lead out of the estates, when he noticed someone else heading the same way. A moment later, he heard them calling his name. Daichi glanced over, not meaning to really pause - at least until he saw who it really was. Sohma, Asako. He felt a strange consciousness flit through him, but his outward expression did not betray that emotion. While he was well aware that the near entirety of the Sohma Estate was an engima - too many secrets, too much darkness - if there was anyone that was an utter mystery to him, it was this woman. But - as Daichi frustratedly had to admit, he had no idea why, because as far as memory dictated they did not really know each other. It didn't help that Asako had a tendency to flee whenever she spotted him though, since that clearly meant something. Following this thread of thought- Daichi hesitated; this was his chance to speak to her. About what? He didn't know. Nevertheless, he felt he needed to.
She was already preparing to make her escape though; he could see it in the way her body seemed to tense up, hear it in the tone of voice, the words she used. "... Good morning, Asako-san," It didn't sound right, to address her that way, but any other way would surely be wrong, right? He tried to gauge just what sort of expression she had towards him, but it was not so easy. "Thanks..." He said in response to her last words, but he cringed inwardly because that sounded just as bad as the initial greeting. He wasn't usually like this; actually, Daichi liked to think that he was capable of maintaining an adequate amount of control in a situation, at least when it came to himself. He wasn't about to let that not be the case this time.
To stop her from leaving, Daichi casually stepped into the path, so she wouldn't be able to easily scurry away. ".. Listen, you're not busy right now, are you? I was actually on my way out to get breakfast, you should come." He wasn't really trying to sound pushy, yet at the same time, for whatever reason, he knew that if he wasn't like that, she might very well take the first opportunity to decline. "It's been a while since I've gone out to eat with someone." he added, taking a few steps to lead the way by example.
In the end, Asako agreed to his request, and Daichi felt the slightest bit of triumph with this minor success. After all, he could be as forceful or firm as he wished, but if she decided to flee, he would not really have had any other remedy. He very well knew that he couldn't chase after her or anything of the sort; that would likely make things worse than they already were and quite frankly, Daichi was not sure he was truly aware of just how bad things were. The one thing he was certain of though, was that - between himself and this woman, the state of things was in a very fragile and delicate balance. He needed to tread carefully.
For the time being though, he was glad she had accepted. He offered her a tentative smile as she fell into step behind him for a few moments. Daichi didn't look back and there was little need to; he could hear Asako's boots crunching lightly in the snow. When she caught up with him, he kept his eyes on the cleared path ahead, despite the urge to look at her, to catch the way her glasses sat on the bridge of her nose. Though she may not have noticed it, his steps slowed for a fraction of a moment, as he mentally scolded himself for such a thought. At the same time though, it made him wonder. Was this some sort of reincarnation related sentiments? She was the doctor of the Sohma Estate, and they'd met only briefly through his mother's work. It didn't extend much further than that, or at least, not enough to warrant the reaction that she did elicit.
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Asa thought that she was going to get away, and that to her was a double edged sword. Part of the dragon knew that things would never change if they didn’t talk, if he didn’t know. Then again, if he were to find out… what would he do? She didn’t know if mentally she could take what happened last time all over again. She also didn’t know if Ki would let Daichi off with just injuries this time, or if she would send him far away, where she would enver see him. All these thoughts made their way rapid fire through the dragon’s head as she stood there and listened to him talk to her.
They were kind of awkward, but considering it had been a year and a half since they had their confrontation with the god, that was only to be expected. When he thanked her, she gave him a curt nod and gave him a small, forced smile. “Ah, No problem, No problem at all.” With that, she planned to leave and even turned to do so. Yet, Daichi was quick to respond. The Outsider stepped into her path, whch caused her eyes to widen a little bit. She was going to say no to him, obviously , but the way that he asked sounded more like a statement.
After being silent for a few moments, Asako brushed a hand through her jet black hair and responded. “Well, I guess that’s all right. It’s been a while since I went out and got breakfast with someone too.” She wasn’t sure what they would talk about, what they would do, but she hoped and prayed that not too much came out during their time together. While he walked ahead of her, Asa pulled out her phone and texted the goddess really quickly.
To: Kicho-San
From: Asako.
Good morning, I hope all is well.
I’m going to be out for a little while this morning, but if you need me
Feel free to text or call. Either way, I’ll stop by and check on you
As soon as I get back.
-Asako
To: Sis
From:Asa
HELP SOS
WEE WOO WEE WOO
HELP ME. DAICHI.
COME TO THE CAFE.
She pressed the send button and stuffed her phone back into her jaket pocket. Then, adjusting her scarf, she stepped up so she was wlaking right alongside daichi. Asa dared not to say anything as her mind wandered to his hand which was just inches away. Just a short year and a half ago, she would have taken that hand in her own and hid it within her pocket so the god or another zodiac wouldn’t see. God, she had it bad for him.
They left the main estate and made their way towards a somewhat crowded shopping area. “Lets go here.” Asa said as they went by a café where she particularly enjoyed the coffee. She walked before he could begin to protest and walked up to the counter, where she explained to Daichi how the café was a little different. “Here they serve European and western style breakfast. They also have your traidional foods, but they’re best known for their crepes.” She looked back to the girl behind the counter and gave her a small smile. “I’ll have a chocolate crepe with whipped cream and a latte.” Asa paid and then stepped aside, allowing for Daichi to order. “I’ll get us a seat.” There was one spot that was over by the windows, but seemed a little bit more secluded from the rest. That was probably for the best, especially if she became super stressed out and turned into her zodiac form. Oh boy. She placed down her coat at the table befre going to then get her food, which was served up on the other side of the counter from where you ordered.
“The spot is over here Dai.” She realized at noce that she had messed up and began to mentally swear s**t s**t s**t s**t!! “Daichi-San.” Hopefully he didn’t realize her slip up. Before much more could be said , though, she just took her seat and took a bite of her crepe. “Delicious as always. How is your food?” Please don’t mention my slip up! She begged him mentally. It wans’t normal for people to call him Dai, but considering their past relationship status, it was normal for her.
In the end, Asako agreed to his request, and Daichi felt the slightest bit of triumph with what he saw as a minor success. After all, he could be as forceful or firm as he wished, but if she decided to flee, he would not really have had any other remedy. He very well knew that he couldn't chase after her or anything of the sort; that would likely make things worse than they already were and quite frankly, Daichi was not sure he was truly aware of just how bad things were. The one thing he was certain of though, was that - between himself and this woman, the state of things was in a very fragile and delicate balance. He needed to tread carefully.
For the time being though, he was glad she had accepted. He offered her a tentative smile as she fell into step behind him for a few moments. Daichi didn't look back and there was little need to; he could hear Asako's boots crunching lightly in the snow. When she caught up with him, he kept his eyes on the cleared path ahead, despite the urge to look at her, to catch the way her glasses sat on the bridge of her nose. Though she may not have noticed it, his steps slowed for a fraction of a moment, as he tried to make sense of why such thoughts came to mind when he was around her. Was this some sort of reincarnation related sentiments? She was the doctor of the Sohma Estate, and they'd met only briefly through his mother's work. It didn't extend much further than that, or at least, not enough to warrant the reaction that she did elicit. The lack of connection and understanding between heart and mind was frustrating and confusing, to say the least.
If anything though, Daichi was glad to see that Asako hadn't felt simply felt obligated to come with him. Though they had walked in silence, once they'd arrived in the nearest shopping district, Asako was the one to take the lead to a cafe; Daichi had no qualms with this and offered no complaints, though he couldn't help but feel strangely uneasy with - well, with the sheer quantity of people. Shouldn't she be careful? It was ironic how much tension could result from such a simple thing.
The cafe that Asako had chosen was honestly not a place Daichi would've thought to enter of his own accord. He followed after her easily enough, as trying new things was never a bad thing.
"..Is that right?" He replied to her explanation of what the cafe served, glancing at her for a moment more, before raising his eyes to the menu board. The girl at the counter smiled at him patiently, and Daichi only nodded distractedly when Asako said she'd go find them a spot. He had no idea what was what on the menu, and so he just chose the first crepe that didn't sound too sweet along with plain and simple coffee.
"The spot is over here, Dai."
"Sounds good-.."
He answered without out thinking twice, as if it was the most natural thing in the world. It only occurred to him two slow seconds after, that Asako had not addressed him as she had previously. No one, short of close friends or family called him Dai. "Did you just -...?" Or - had she? Was he mistaken in hearing? Daichi grabbed the plates he'd ordered when they were served up, leaving the sentence quiet and trailing and feeling the beginnings of a headache, as if his mind was stubborn insisting on resisting his attempts to clear up his confusion.
Daichi set the plates down onto the table, but he did not sit down right away. Instead, he just studied the young woman, from his vantage point. The more he did, the more he was sure that - she knew something. Something about ... something. About him. About them? She was important. He sat down, with the slightest of frowns on his face as he dug into his breakfast.
Asako's next question - a little nervous, a little fluttery- was answered with a small nod. "Yeah, it is actually. This is a real nice place too, I never would've thought to come here," He offered her what he hoped was a contented expression, before taking another bite of his meal. The coffee was just strong enough to nicely compliment the sweetness of the crepe he was eating, and only barely enough to keep his mind distracted from the situation at hand.
"You probably know a lot of people with what you do, don't you Asako-san?" Daichi began, somewhat out of the blue. But, he couldn't help it. No matter how he tried to word it, he could not think of any way to ask her why she'd called him his nickname, or why she even knew it in the first place, without making this interaction more tense and awkward than it already was. "I don't doubt half the estate knows who my mother is, from her job." At best, this was a vague attempt to hint that he had (probably) heard her call him 'Dai'. At worst, he was trying to fill the silence. He didn't know which was better. "Things haven't changed all that much since I came back to the estate a few weeks ago though. Some things never change, I guess, right?" He meant to say it light-heartedly, but it did not feel that way to him when he spoke.
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Asa was 95% sure that by the end of the breakfast she was either going to have A- Transformed into a dragon or B- had some other kind of nervous breakdown. She hoped, no, prayed that Daichi didn’t realize that she had used his nickname, but with the way he reacted to her, she realized at once that her slip up hadn’t gone unnoticed Damn it, Asako! She swore at herself mentally as she proceeded to then take another bite of her food and wait for Daichi to say something, to react in some strange, unseen way.
Yet, he didn’t. He actually commented on the restaurant as she had hoped he would. There we go, that was an opening! She took it at once and ran with it. “Yes, I actually come here enough to get coffee that I know the owner.” Asa admitted with a light chuckle. “She came all the way from America to open her little café. She’s very cool, if you have a chance, you should definitely talk to her…” Ok, she was just ranting at that point, but she didn’t want there to be enough silence where Daichi could ask a question that could cause things to start to unravel.
Yet, she failed and once again she cursed at herself mentally. Damn it. He seemed to realize too much. He realized that there was something going n that she wasn’t telling him about. The prompting, the questions, were ones that were carefully chosen and after taking another bite of her crepe and thinking things out, Asa responded. “Ah, yes, I know all of the zodiac and I know the other workers. I know this is going to sound weird but I for the most part know all of the outsiders that everyone works with.” Yes, she knew them in case she had to erase their memories. If she had erased their memories then she also had to keep in contact and make sure that things didn’t start to slip through. Since things were so painful with Daichi, she had honestly let things go too long and probably too far.
Asa released a nervous laugh and nodded her head. “Yeah, on the Sohma estate nothing really changes, but whether or not that is a good thing can definitely be argued.” She looked down into her coffee cup and adjusted her glasses to a higher point on her nose. “Quite frankly, I find that to not be a good thing. Kicho on the other hand would really like things to always remain stagnant.”
Yes. Things hadn’t changed. Dai… shouldn’t have come back. Why was he back? Was it because Asa hadn’t erased his memories well enough, was it because things were seeping through? She reached into her purse and pulled out a tiny container with quite a few white and red pills. “Daichi-San,” She said as she placed the bottle on the table. “I hate to say this, but I, as a doctor, would like to strongly suggest that you begin to take these pills every day, one in the morning and one at night.” Maybe the curse wasn’t as strong as it had used to be before, but nowadays Asa had to use iplls in conjunction with memory erasing to kepe things working as they should.
“Sometimes people that are around the curse for too long tend to be subject to some… negative side effects.” She swiftly lied to him, hoping and praying that he went with it. “These pills should certainly help to combat things such as headaches or aches and pains. Of course, if they don’t work, it would be very easy for me to prescribe some other kind of medication.” She had to think about it, but as soon as she did, she realized it. “Your mother has pills too, and if I’m not mistaken she’s doing quite well.” Those pills that Asa had prescribed were a little different, just your average pills for headaches, but he didn’t need to know all of those minor details .
Asa took another bite of her crepe and looked at him. “Do you have any questions or concerns? If you need me to, I can always have the pills made into some kind of syrup or smaller tablet.” She was sure that wouldn’t be the problem, though. After all, he wasn’t a wimp. If anything, she could see a problem with him taking it in the first place.
Please, Dai. She begged him mentally I would rather have you forget then remember and lose it all again. You were in so much pain last time. I love you, I don’t know if I will ever stop, but sometimes love isn’t enough.
She was usually such a quiet woman, and so to hear her just a little more animated - just a tiny bit more enthusiastic, was welcome. She seemed so pleased with the cafe that it appeared as though Asako could go on and on about it, and that was good. She didn't do that, laugh like that, often enough.
He didn't know why those thoughts came to mind though. What did he know of this woman, to make such assumptions of her? Maybe that was just the vibe she gave off.
Of course, as soon as she heard his comments, that all changed. Daichi took a few more bites of the crepe he'd ordered, raising his eyes to her as Asako went on to answer.
"... I know this is going to sound weird but I for the most part know all of the outsiders that everyone works with."
Though she likely didn't mean anything by the way she answered, Daichi could not help the wry expression that came to his face. He rested his chin on the back of his hand, wondering if, to those cursed Zodiacs, he fell into the category of an 'outsider'. One would assume that an outsider was someone that didn't pertain to the Estate or to the Sohmas. Daichi was neither of those, but there were times, when, regardless of his home and of the name he carried, he was still an outsider in this crazy family of theirs. He just .. wasn't a part of it, Sohma or not. Childhood resentment welled it's through his chest for the briefest of moments - they thought they were their own special class, didn't they? Daichi set the fork down in favor for the cup of coffee, shoving the thoughts away. That hadn't really been the point of the question anyways. Instead, he nodded as if her words were simply further confirmation. Aside from that curse of theirs and whatnot, Asako was a doctor, after all. She was going to know plenty of people.
Daichi wondered if he was possibly mistaken, when he heard the nervous little giggle she let escape. "That's impossible, isn't it though?" he answered innocently, "Whether someone wants it or not, it's impossible to stop all change for long." In the end though, Daichi leaned back in his seat; his coffee was gone much too fast and his cup was empty. "Sorry if that all sounded strange, Asako-san. I don't usually try to sound... philosophical or anything,"
When Asako pulled out the small bottle of pills, Daichi felt a frown work it's way onto his features. The bite of food that'd been meant for his mouth was returned to the plate, and he studied the bottle where it stood on the table. A moment later though, he reached out for it, turning it in his fingers and watching the way the tiny red-white pills tumbled about.
He didn't think he was experiencing any negative side-effects. He looked back up to Asako when she made mention of headaches, as if she had read his mind. Well.. if anything, Daichi could admit he'd been having headaches here and there as of late - but it was not something he ever would've attributed to that curse of theirs. He bit his tongue lightly out of habit, as he threw his mind back; he hadn't really had that problem at all when he'd been living outside of the estate. Headaches and all. He'd tried to avoid thinking about the estate and his family during that time though. Then again, correlation did not necessarily imply causation as they said in statistics. Too bad he'd dropped out of school.
"Is that right? Even my mom takes these..." And, Daichi really had no reason to doubt Asako. As for his mother's prescriptions, he really had little other choice than to rely on the doctor's information. As a child, he did not pay attention to things such as what medicines his mother took, and even as a teen, their awkward relationship hadn't really allowed for too many personal moments, let alone knowing about what prescriptions she took, considering her busy schedule and all. She seemed well enough the last time he'd seen her though, so he supposed that was all there was to it.
Daichi turned the bottle once more in his hand, when Asako asked if he had questions. ".. Do you always keep these kinds of pills in your bag?" What a coincidence that she had these specific pills that were supposed to help him for the specific issues he had been coming to realize he'd been experiencing. Wasn't the normal process to diagnose the patient first, or was it something so obvious that it wasn't necessary? Perhaps it was just another 'outsider' thing. He sighed. "... Listen, Asako-san, I -"
"Asako-onee!"
Anything else Daichi wanted to say was interrupted by the new arrival. His gaze swiveled over to the familiar figure of Arisu, and he promptly let the words on his tongue fade. The younger girl made a small scene, pouting and all, before taking a spot beside Asako. "Morning. It's no problem with me," he answered, more out of courtesy than anything else in that moment. Normally, Daichi didn't mind Arisu's presence, especially since he knew these two were close and all. Still though, he couldn't help but feel like Arisu had interjected just before they could have gotten to the important stuff - whatever that important stuff was. If only she'd waited for a few moments more to arrive. His expression did not expose his frustration.
Remembering that he still had the bottle of pills in clear view, Daichi curled his fingers around it, before putting it away in the inner pocket of his jacket, which he had yet to take off. "Thanks for these, Asako-san. I'll try to remember to take them," He rose to his feet just then, "I'm going to get more coffee. You want the same dish, right? I'll get it for you," He stepped away from the table, leaving the two girls as he made for the counter.
As he did so, Daichi realized that, without him really being aware of it, an anticipation had been building inside. It seemed unlikely the conversation between Asako and himself would continue now. He raised a hand to his temple, taking a bit of a breath, before ordering Arisu's crepe and another cup of coffee.
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Asako couldn’t help but notice that suddenly his expression seemed to change as the gears in his head began to turn. Oh boy was he starting to realize that there was more to them than just acquaintances? No. No. She had to stop thinking like that! The next words out of his mouth were nothing less than mysterious, philosophical and made her heart ache even more than before. God. That was one of the 1001 reasons why she loved him. When he didn’t let his anger get the worst of him and let his words spak for him instead, they really showed how smart he was.
They were able to debate for hours upon hours and it was beautiful. He was one of the few people she could do that with and when eh apologized she at once shook her her head no at him. “No, No, please don’t apologize.” She said with a small chuckle. “ I like deep talk!” She didn’t have enough time to keep talking to about that as the conversation kept going onto the next thing.
They talked aout the medication and her little sister figure came into the picture and ‘saved her’. She made things better, but only for maybe twenty minutes when she pretty much ate her food and then ran out again after giving Asa some good advice. “Well that was quick.” Asa laughed lightly as she brushed a hand through her black hair and looked to Dai “Thank you so much for letting her ahng out with us.” She hoped and prayed that he didn’t realize that she had invited her to come out and save her from what could have ended up being the most awkward situation of her life. Part of her seriously wondered what he was going to say before she came in and interrupted their conversation, though?
“Oh, before she came in, you had asked if I always carried those in my purse, and the answer is no. I was honestly going to respond with no.” She laughed. “I’m a work-a-holic, but I am not that bad, ok? I was actually hoping to meet with you and check in on you. A lot of stress can come from living alongside the curse. So, I had those in my bag for when I met with you. I was planning to bother you either today or tomorrow. Good thing I found you today.” Asa. You are ranting. Shut up. She told herself as she took a deep, deep breath in an attempt to calm her heart which was beating way, way too fast and felt like it was going to have a heart attack at any second.
“So. Um. Anyway, I know you’ve probably forgotten by now, but you were going to say something before she came in, what were you going to say?” There was a moment of silence and she started to panic. “We could always just meet another time and chill and talk if you need to go though! Its’ totally ok!” DAMN it ASA! YOU ARE PATHETIC. She yelled at herself mentally as she barely kept her composure.
Their number dwindled back down to two by the time that Daichi had finally finished his breakfast and his second cup of coffee; still, for whatever reason he felt compelled to get more, which was questionable. The coffee was indeed as good as the reputation Asako have given the cafe, he wondered if there was not some other reason for this incessant urge to turn tinge his blood with caffeine. Perhaps it was that sense of frustration simmering through him at the sudden interruption, though he would never blame the young girl for it. He very well couldn't use the poor reason his mind had conjured after all; he wasn't even quite sure where he had intended this conversation with Asako to go to be getting upset about it. Instead, Daichi set the cup down firmly on the empty plate.
"No problem." he replied politely, when Asako thanked him. If anything, the shift to idle chatter and more comments about the food had done a job in it's own way, forcing him to settle down in terms of nerves. Gods, maybe he was sick or something.
Leaning his chin on his hand, he studied Asako's features as she laughed and explained that no, she did not make a habit of keeping pills in her purse. "Ah... for me?" Despite himself, he couldn't help but offer her a bit of a smile in return. "I guess that is proof that you're a work-a-holic, always thinking of your patients, but I appreciate it, so - thanks, Asako-san."
Things had seemed to more or less have shifted into a relaxed state between them. As a result, when she asked him about what he'd meant to say previously, Daichi found himself blanking out for the briefest of moments. He dropped his hand to the table and shifted his position on his chair, leaning back. Asako seemed to grow panicked all of a sudden as she frantically tried to mention that it was fine if he rather they meet later. She was .. acting strange. She'd been acting strange in intervals throughout the majority of their time together though, hadn't she?
"I'm alright for time, I don't have to be at work until eight tonight," he assured her, as he eventually forced himself to sit properly. "Unless there's somewhere you need to be." What had he meant to say then, though? When they'd been interrupted? This was his chance, but he'd lost that little thread of precious thought. "I guess.." Daichi decided there was no sense in trying to be too delicate about things. "This might sound weird, but this - ? It feels like I've done this before. Not been in this cafe, I mean, but me and you." This time, he gave her a bit of a sheepish look, before quickly shaking his head. This cozy place was getting to him. "Forget I said that. I didn't really mean anything by it." He rose to his feet, shrugging on his jacket that he'd removed some time ago. The little bottle of pills shifted ever so slightly in the pocket.
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Asako nodded in agreement at his confirmation of her work-a-holic standing. "Hah, don't worry about it. As always, happy to help." She gave him a small nod of her head." But then, as she nodded her head, she looked into her coffee and something popped into her head and she realized something. "I have something you can do for me in exchange for it. It... May sound weird. But you really don't have to call me San, Daichi-San." She laughed lightly. "Chan definitely would suffice.” Since Asa was the doctor and All, she heard Asako-San quite a bit from everyone that wasn’t her friend. She would rather he just dropped everything and just called her Asa but that wouldn’t’ make sense would it?
When he asked her if she was good on time, she picked up her cell phone and checked to see if there was a message from the god, Uroshi. There was one. She opened it and at once her blood began to run cold. Uroshi was sickly but he was the god and in that respect he was strong, so Asa knew better than to take his words and his commands lightly
To: Asa
From: Uroshi
Take the day off today
But clear tomorrow. I plan to do with you as I please
Oh god. What did he want to do? Part of her was afraid of herself for thinking as evily as she did right then and there, but she wished that he would get so ill that he couldn’t’ leave his bed, that his sickness would have one of those days where he wouldn’t be able to leave his bed and Asa would just read him a book or sing. “I-I’m good for the rest of the day. Yeah. Lets go.” She got up to her feet. “Lets stay out as long as possible ! Until 8.” Oh god she didn’t want to go back. “U-Unless you need to get back or something.” Oh god what had she suggested to him? Asa you idiot. She wanted to start hitting her head against a wall but she all the same tried not to falter and mentally beat herself up too badly as she got up to her feet and gave him another smile. “They’ve put in some really nice stores as well as some nice venues we can duck into if it gets too cold. Lets go. I’ll try not to be too boring.”
She began to walk towards the door and pulled it open for the two of them as they stepped into the cold world outside. Honestly Asa wanted to reach out and grab his hand and hold it within her own hand, but she of course dared not do that, instead, she fiddled with the necklace that she had gotten for Christmas when the two of them were together. He had the lock, she had the key. If she used the key to unlock his lock then it opened to reveal a picture of them from one of their earlier pictures. As if on cue, as those thoughts about the lock and key were rushing through her head, the man who had sold her the lock and key was outside of his shop shoveling the snow and spotted her. “Asa-Chan!” He was an elderly man that was close to her after the incident. He was hard on hearing and also pretty bad with his memory, but as skilled as they came. Whenever she could, Asa would come and check up on him to make sure he was doing all right.
“Asa-chan! Is that lock boy or do my old eyes deceive me?! It’s Lock boy!! Come come!” He dropped the shovel and before Asa could grab Daichi and run the old man had grabbed them boh by the arms and dragged them by the arms and dragged them into the store where he sat them down and offered them tea, which Asa politely refused and began to tap her foot lightly while looking up at the ceiling , trying to think about what to do next.
Oh god what was next? Was he going to spill the beans? “He’s crazy, don’t listen to him.” She feebly protested as the old man pulled out the book he had behind the counter and opened it to the page where it showed the lock and key. “So perfect.” He said while shaking his head. Positivey beautiful. “So. I gotta ask. How long you two been dating?”
It sounded funny to say - but, not in a bad way. A familiar way? That sense of repetition was disorienting, to say the least. Nevertheless, he obliged her, because in it's own way, it sounded right.
The n** and bite of the cold air across his face felt refreshingly opposite to the warmth he'd grown accustomed to inside the cafe. Asako seemed to have gotten jumpy all over again, as she adamantly declared that - so long as he was not busy - that they spend the entire day out. It was still quite early, though that was not really much of a concern for Daichi. Rather, he hadn't had any particular plans in mind for the rest of the day, but considering the fact that she had initially seemed somewhat jumpy and reluctant to accompany him, it seemed a little funny she would have a change of heart so fast.
"No, there's nothing that I needed to do," he assured; he would make this work for himself, one way or another. Grocery shopping and the like? That could wait. Though he should probably feel guilty for thinking that way, all Daichi did was smile at Asako, as she mentioned how they had added some more shops to the nearby district.
Slipping his hands into the pocket of his coat, Daichi absently attempted burying his nose into the collar of his hoodie. So far, he figured that the idea of trying to directly suggest that something was strange or wrong or - whatever, was not working out as well as he might have anticipated. But, if the way that Asako had been acting was any indication, then maybe he wouldn't need to do all that much.
"Asa-chan! Is that lock boy or do my old eyes deceive me?! It’s Lock boy!! Come come!”
Daichi had been staring off into the distance, admittedly a lot more lost in thought than he would've cared to admit. The man seemed to recognize Asako - both of them, though. Who or - what was Lock Boy? Lips pressed together momentarily, Daichi kept his thoughts to himself for the time being. The old man dragged promptly into his shop, looking much too pleased to see someone who did not even know who he was.
Inside, the man cheerily offered them both tea; unlike Asako, Daichi accepted the offer for the simple sake of it.
But, it was awkward. Asako seemed to be all nerves in a matter of moments, and all the while, the old man bustled about his shop as if there was not the slightest tension between his guests at all. Daichi told himself that sooner or later, whatever was going on would be revealed. Either that, or he would ask for it, plain and simple.
As the man bustled back and forth and about, Asako nervously mumbled that that the elderly man was crazy. Daichi glanced towards her, though as far as he saw, the man seemed quite sound of the mind if not elderly. "What does he mean, 'lock boy'?" Daichi asked quietly, watching Asako for her reaction. He was quickly realizing that - well, she definitely knew something about what was going on.
A few moments after setting the water to heat, the elderly man returned to where he had left them sitting, pulling out a thick book and flipping through the pages and finally landing on one towards the end.
"So perfect."
Daichi felt a frown work it's way onto his features, as he stared at the intricate designs of a gold and silver key and little lock that appeared to be it's companion. The more he stared at it though, the more he felt an uneasiness begin to sluice through him. Unconsciously, Daichi felt his fingers curl ever so slightly into the material of his jeans. Something was - not right? A moment later, Daichi realized that he'd been holding his breath; exhaling quietly, he forced himself to relax. He needed to calm down and keep a clear mind.
"So. I gotta ask. How long you two been dating?"
Something, in his mind seemed to shift; crack; fracture. For a moment, it felt as if the room itself had tipped over on it's side. He paused for a moment, before straightening his posture, trying to force that sensation away. "Sorry Ojisan, I think you're mistaken," he managed, "We're not dating. We're actually only ... acquain..tances..." Daichi was separatedly aware that his words were slowing, tinged with confusion. That was true though, wasn't it? He didn't really know Asako and he very well couldn't be dating her, if she appeared prepared to flee his presence at a moment's notice. ...Right?
"What?" The old man seemed a bit dismayed by Daichi's words. "A little trouble in paradise, eh? I remember when Asa-chan came in requesting these pieces, oh, she wouldn't stop speaking about it being a gift for her boyfriend ..."
He raised a hand to his head, masking the motion as brushing stray locks of hair from his eyes, but he shook his head. The elderly man stared at him in something akin to sympathy, then to Asako, and then, nudging the book a little nearer he excused himself momentarily to get the tea.
"...Is this some sort of joke, Asako-san?"
Daichi took another silent breath, trying to ignore the headache that seemed to be growing and not even realizing that he'd reverted to calling her 'san' again. It occurred to her, that perhaps, she could be one of those stalkers and whatnot, and he wouldn't even have a clue, which would explain why the elderly man was speaking as he had. Dwelling on it for a moment though, he knew that wasn't the case. This was all different.
"If there's something you'd like to tell me, I'd appreciate that." The words were somewhat strained, but clear enough, frustration tempered. Despite himself, once again, he felt that sense of childhood jealousy welled it's way through him. These Sohmas and their secrets. Even this stranger seemed to be more in the know, than he. "Something is going on - it has been since I left the estate."
The elderly man returned with the tea, all smiles.
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Asa could almost see the gears starting to turn in Daichi’s head the moment the old man started to go more and more into detail. “Mr Matusmoto pease stop.” She groaned softly as she brushed a hand through her jet black hair and tried to come up with a plan. No matter how she looked at it through she couldn’t think of a good way to work things out. The old man was just making things weirder and weirder and it wasn’t ok. “He’s talking about a different boyfriend.” She said simply with a shrug of her shoulders, hoping, no praying that that would get the old man to stop. But it didn’t ,he pulled out the book and showed them the objects that he ahd had created for the two of them not all too long ago.
The way he was continuing to persist and the way Daichi was getting more and more upset was making Asako feel more and more uneasy. She bit down on her lip and fought to keep calm. No. It wasn’t a joke. Damn it This was this definition of serious. She wanted to grab him right then and there and erase his memories again. She wanted to erase them again and stick him somewhere far far away, but at the same time she wanted to grab him and just hold him close.
It was so hard as she strulgged to contain every single emotion that rushed through her and each one that played across her face. It was then that it hit her. He had called her san yet again even though she had requested that he didn’t call her that. Ouch. Just ouch. He hadn’t meant to but still. She brushed that aside for now and fiddled with the key necklace around her neck. It was probably a bad choice for her to have worn it that day of all days.
The old man Matsumoto came back with the tea and placed it down and smiled at the two. “Aw a lovers quarrel?” He asked as he took his seat and placed his head on his hands. “Ah, I remember when my wife and I used to have those. How cute.” He saw Asa fiddling with the necklace and his eyes widened. “Ah, Asa dear! Is that it? IS that it?” He was observant as all get out and leaned in. “It is! It is!”
“Oh, it’s not. It’s not.” By that time, Daichi was looking over and looking at Asa and she felt like she had to give it up. “IT is.” She whispered, knowing that she was caught like a deer in the headlights. Heart beating fast, she handed over the key to the old jewelry maker who examined it with a fine eye and then showed it to Daichi.
“Daichi. No ,You don’t understand.” She began, the most stereotypical way in the book, biting down in her lip as she tried to formulate the words that would help her to explain the exceedingly awkward situation at hand.
Yet. The old man seemed to already have everything planned out. “The boy was named…. Ahhh what was his name again? Dai?” He scowled as he tried to remember and tapped at his temple with his finger. He spun the key in his finger and shrugged. “ah well. Either way. Asa-chan was very sure to have your initials engraved on the key and the lock. See? Wow. Asa-Chan, You’ve taken very good care of this here charm! I can see the Initials perfectly! AS and DS- Ya know! I asked her what the S stood for and she said Sohma. I almost near died when I heard that the two of yyou had the same last name.”
Oh god no. She could feel her heart snapping as her world began to shatter all around her. Of course this was happening as soon as things were just starting to truly look up for her. Sure, she may have not gotten to have Daichi in her life as a romantic interest, but maybe as a friend at least! She looked at the old man, who just didn’t understand and just kept blabbing. “Man you guys were two peas in a pod! I wonder if I still have a picture that was in yer lock!” He pulled it out of the binder and showed it to them and of course, Asa began to turn a deep , deep shade of red. It was a picture of the two fo them on one of their first dates, holding hands, smiling and as happy as could be. It was something that was obviously not photo-shopped. It was clear it was them and oh god. She was horrified. The old man was like a grandpa to her. After a year of being around him she couldn’t’ believe he still had that on file like that, though. At his old age who knew anymore though.
Asa didn’t even know what to say as she abruptly got up to her feet and slammed her hands down right against the table. “The S in Sohma is said to stand for secrets.” She said, looking down at her hands, which were trembling ever so slightly. “Daichi. Another thing is I guess Stay…. S-Stay back!” Her voice was starting to waver as she turned so quickly she knocked over her chair. Part of her wanted to pick it up for Mr. Matumoto but she couldn’t for if she did then he could get her to stop and explain.
As soon as the cold air hit her something else did. A sudden realization. The key.
At that point though she was already running as hard and as fast as she could, her heart pounding hard in her chest as her breath came out in pants. It was far too cold to be running like this. She breathed hard and bent over, clutching at her chest. Her jacket wasn’t’ even jipped, her scarf wasn’t tied. God, she was a mess. All she wanted to do right then and there was cry. Lip quivering, she fought back the tears as hard as she could. The stress was so much. It was a wonder she had not transformed yet or done something of the sort. Stupid sohmas. Stupid everything! She prayed that he wouldn't chase after her and make things even harder than they had to be. As she gathered herself and wiped the tears away, starting to walk again.
Meanwhile in the shop the old man gently placed the key into Dai's hand and sighed. "I think I may have made things quite complicated for you two, but perhaps It was for the better. Asa-chan is quite fond of her secrets, isn't she? I'm not sure I understand her Sohma secrets and the like, but I can tell you this much, when you moved away a year ago, Dai-San, she wasn't the same afterwards. I don't know what happened. Judging by the look on your face you don't understand completely either. But boy, go after her. I think you owe it to yourself and Asa-Chan too to find out. Good luck." With that, he shooed Dai out of the store with a pat on the head and another simple good luck. Oh and a few nice handwarmers for inside of his jacket pockets.
[[ooc;; I AM SO SORRY FOR IT BEING SO LONG PLZ DONT BE UPSET. IT WONT HAPPEN AGAIN IM SO SORRY OK IT PROBS WILL]]
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