Hino Kahoko's feet stalled beneath her and she came to a dead-stop, her nose scrunching up in surprise. Takato Mio, endlessly chattering beside her, stopped as well.
"Kaho-chan?"
"Mio, do you smell something?"
"Something, as in the perfume department?" her friend replied, pointing toward a cluster of glass cases.
"But there's something," Kahoko insisted as she made her way toward the perfume assistant. "I recognize that scent. Excuse me, um-"
"—good afternoon," chirped the saleswoman and amiably gestured to the small vial of a clear-colored liquid. "This is one of our most classic scents. It's called Icy Mint and is a scent preferred by esteemed gentlemen. Would you like to take some for your father or boyfriend?"
Kahoko took the bottle and uncorked it, breathing in the aroma with a long, deep breath, followed by a dreamy sigh. It was an intoxicating combination of freshly brewed tea, pine-scented rosin, and cold spring afternoons. "It's so familiar to me," she murmured half to herself.
"Maybe you know someone who wears it," commented Mio, taking a sample for herself. "Hmm, it smells nice."
"Yes, and...it makes me feel warm and safe and strong and content. I just can't put my finger on where I know it from." Dabbing a bit onto her neck so that she could continue to smell the scent, Kahoko walked off in a daze with Mio trailing behind her.
On the other side of the city, Tsukimori Len reached out inside his cabinet and caught a whiff of pine as he neatly hung in his immaculate white blazer. He took a long breath, sighed, and dreamed of moonlit nights, of strawberries, of duets.
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just one of my unpublished ficlets. enjoy.
so, do you guys want me to post another series of one-shots? tell me. ^-^