blue note
It's the third man she goes after in a few months. She supposes that she should stop—because she's Iwase. She's fucking coolheaded and smart and not at all someone who is led by her feelings. Because that's just not who she is, right? Right, of course, and that's what she'll shove in Takagi's head.
But Niizuma is different. He's all ragged edges and maniacal laughter and he has this amazing set of eyes, and she works with him, so it's only normal that they start dating each other. But she and Takagi were pretty close too (or so she likes to think) and he ended up marrying that tramp Kaya. They even invited her to the wedding—as if she'd go.
"It's dangerous—"
"I know that, Eiji," she replies, cutting him off because it's the third night in a row she spends at his place and it's the third night in a row that he starts giving her the speech. The first time she actually got a bit surprised, and she felt the heat rushing to her cheeks. But that's because she didn't think of him as that kind of man. The second time he ended it, she just placidly stared at him while he drew.
"Do you really, Akino-san?"
"Call me Iwase."
There's a silence, broken by the scritchscritchscritch of his pen, and he turns in his chair, bending awkwardly like only he can, and stares at her. His eyes are piercing but glassy, and she doesn't know why but she feels herself turn nervous.
"Iwase," he says, and it rolls of his tongue easily. "It's a good name."
She feels as if she's scored.