An engagement ring of clear crystals decorated a simple band of white gold, forming a flower with five petals, while the largest clear jewel made up the center. The ring had originally belonged to my mother, however, after the passing of my father, she handed the ring over to me.

As to prevent any misunderstandings, I took to wearing it on my right ring finger.

"Ah, excuse me," I mumbled, bumping shoulders with a man that had baby blue hair while walking through the supermarket. It was overly busy, which was uncommon during this time of day.

This whole week— in fact— I have been bumping into men, and it began to bother me.

First, it was a man with bright red hair at the major newspaper firm I worked at part-time. Second had been a titan of a man with lavender hair at the local bakery by my home. Third had been a man with near-milk chocolate skin and hair that reminded me of ripe blueberries at the local park; he had a deep voice that could send shivers down ones spine as he warned a group of men not to mess with a woman that had bubble gum pink hair, less they have a death wish.

Fourth man that I ran into had green hair and wore glasses that hid equally green eyes; he was the recently transferred Midorima-sensei, one of the best doctors in Japan.

I ran into the fifth man at a clothing boutique while browsing for new blouses. He had lovely golden blond hair paired with matching golden eyes that seemed to twinkle as he made suggestions about which blouse I should get, which was surprisingly helpful.

Now I ran into this new person in the market.

"This fell from your finger, Miss…" Blinking rapidly, I focused on the object held carefully in the palm of his hand. It was my mother's old engagement ring.

"Oh my… Thank you. I didn't notice that it fell off."

"You should probably get the band adjusted," the stranger suggested, shifting his blue gaze out the window near-by.

The sun had started to set already.

"It's getting late. You should get home before the monsters come out, [name]-san."

"Wait, how did you—?" I looked up from placing the ring back on my right ring finger, only to see the man with baby blue hair had vanished. Feeling unnerved, I quickly bought my groceries and left, doing my best to get home before the streetlights came on.

Once home, I made sure that all the doors and windows were securely locked before getting ready for bed.

A low rumble of thunder woke me up in the middle of the night, followed by a streak of lightning. Getting up from the comforts of my bed, I drew back the curtains to look outside.

Instead of the normal inky blackness, the sky was a dark red, while the once bright moon had become an ominous charcoal gray.

A fork of lightning flashed across the sky painting the world a near neon purple.

Startled by the change, I stumbled back, only to fall on my bed once more.

"It must be unsettling for a human like you," a voice rung out behind me, just as another flash illuminated the dark room.

I looked over my shoulder to see the six men I ran into this past week seemingly bleed out from the darkness. It appeared that the one who spoke had been the lone redhead.

"She looks like a frightened usagi, Aka-chin," the one with lavender hair stated, munching on a box of pocky.

"Of course she's frightened, nanodayo. This is all new for her."

I was surprised that none-other than Midorima-sensei was among the group of strangers.

"Please excuse them, [name]-san. This is also a bit new for us, too." Said the man from the market.

"Who want to explain everything to her, then?"

"How about I—?"

"No. Thank you for offering, but no, Kise-kun." The baby blue haired male said. "Aomine-kun would also confuse [name]-san as well…"

"I'll explain it to her, Tetsuya." Spoke the redhead.

"Aka-cchi is good at explaining. So we'll leave it to you."

Stepping farther out of the shadows, I was able to see all of them clearly. Each male wore a tailored black suit with a crisp white dress shirt, and they all had different colored skinny neckties.

"Allow me to introduce myself first; I am Akashi Seijurou, and the reason we are here is because of your ring." Akashi gestured towards my right hand.

"My… ring?" Confused, I looked down at the piece of jewelry. Instead of the regular clear crystals, they had managed to change to match their ties. "How? When?!"

"It happened when you ran into each of us; however it did not make itself known until now because you are in our world."

"Your world?" I inquired.

"The world of Ayakashi, of course, [name]-cchi!" piped the blonde-haired person— Kise— as he smirked.

"Ryouta, watch it." Akashi scolded, causing Kise to pout instead. "As unlikely as it might seem, Ayakashi do exist. We just have adapted as time moved on and everything evolved."

"What does that have anything to do with my ring?" Shifting a bit, I made myself more comfortable.

"Your ring changed based on our Yōkai, [name]-san. Crystals have been used for centuries to absorb energies." The one Akashi called 'Tetsuya' said. "However that is only half of the reason."

I looked between him and Akashi. "What's the other half?" I asked, a bit wary of the answer.

"Your scent is the other reason. It is curiously alluring to us Ayakashi. Moreover, it can trigger two different responses from us."

Shifting a bit closer towards my headboard, I tried moving away from them all as best as I could in this situation. "And what are they?"

"To either mate or devour you." I felt the blood drain from my face at his words.

"However you are protected for the moment, [name]-san. But it won't last forever unless certain conditions are met." Directing my gaze, I looked over to 'Tetsuya'. "As Akashi-kun has said, your scent is alluring to us Ayakashi, to the point that we either want to mark you as our mate, or devour you whole. Before any Ayakashi could do either, you ran into us first. Each of us has marked you as a potential, which wards off others."

"So you're saying that unless I choose one of you, there's a high chance that I'll be killed?"

"In a nutshell, that's basically what'll happen. There's probably more to it, however it would take forever to explain, in detail, to a human woman," Aomine spoke nonchalantly with a mere shrug of his broad shoulders.

"Before she chooses, we need to properly introduce ourselves, nanodayo."

They all agreed with Midorima-sensei in some shape or form.

"I am Kuroko Tetsuya, a crow demon, and in the human's reality, I work as an elementary school teacher. Nice to meet you." Kuroko gave a small bow in greeting.

"[name]-cchi! I'm glad to really meet you~!" the blond cheered, scooping me up in a tight hug. "I'm Kise Ryouta, a kitsune and model, and I'll make sure we have a wonderful time together."

"Get off her, nanodayo." Midorima-sensei stated, pulling Kise off me by the collar of his suit. "Midorima Shintarou, Ryūjin, and also doctor." He ended by readjusting his glasses.

Someone then threw an arm across my shoulder, leaning heavily against my side. "Mm, you do smell good…" A shiver ran down my spine at the man's voice as it tickled my ear. Suddenly their hair brushed the underside of my jaw as they nuzzled my neck.

"Aomine-chin~ Hurry up~" the largest male whined, eating more pocky.

"Tsk. Ruin my fun…" he pulled back, smirking up at me while I blushed. "Aomine Daiki, panther demon, and homicide detective."

The second to last man poked my cheek, drawing my attention towards his large form.

"I'm Murasakibara Atsushi, a zashiki-warashi," my mouth dropped open in shock, as zashiki-warashi were said to be a small and mischievous child, "and the patissier at the bakery." His voice was muffled as he started eating sea-salt flavored chips.

Akashi then grabbed my chin gently with his index finger and thumb, forcing my gaze back to him. "Akashi Seijurou, Vermilion bird of the South, also known as the Suzaku. In the human's reality, I am a CEO of the major newspaper firm and heir to the Akashi family. It is a pleasure to meet you face-to-face, [name]." As he spoke, Akashi brought my left hand up and pressed his soft lips against my knuckles.

He then proceeded to pull back, and stepped back in line with the others. "Now it's your choice, [name]-san. Who is it going to be?" questioned Kuroko, waiting patiently for my answer, just as another tongue of purple lightning illuminated my bedroom once more.

Chewing on my lower lip, I scanned each of them once more before settling on a choice. "I choose…"

{Kuroko} {Kise} {Midorima} {Aomine} {Murasakibara} {Akashi}

This is the common chapter for my CYOA that I am also posting on my tumblr theotakulifechoseme. And it has already been decided which order they shall be completed in.

Akashi, Aomine, Kuroko, Kise, Midorima, and lastly Murasakibara.