DAY 1 - GREEN
"This color [Green] relates to stability and endurance, giving us persistence and the strength to cope with adversity."
-BEWARE: MANGA SPOILERS-
Yato was weary as he dragged his feet up the stairs to the attic of Kofuku's abode. Having to play nice with his Father sapped him of every ounce of his willpower. His conversation with Hiyori hadn't helped either. On the surface, he was jealous and possessive. Hiyori was his precious person, and how dare anyone be so familiar with her other than himself, especially his own father. The dog-tired divinity was relieved to find momentary solitude in the humble space. Unceremoniously flopping onto his futon, Yato continued digging at himself, turning his emotions over and over, like bubbling stew over a fire.
Deeper still, he felt he needed to protect his cherished girl. The incessant evils that plagued them were, in many cases, aimed directly at the devotee.
But he felt like she didn't truly understand his intentions. Her moods vacillated at light speed, and he could never gauge exactly what she was thinking at any given moment. All he knew was that she had vowed to stay by his side. His Hiyori has promised to never forget him.
The dark-haired magatsukami swore to himself that he would endure hell all over again if he had to. The clenching in his chest was an ache he'd never known before, when it suddenly struck him.
Does she understand? Does she know what I would so for her? Does Hiyori feel the same?
A few miles away, Hiyori stared at her homework blankly, unable to make sense of the numbers, symbols and words on the pages before her. Waves of butterflies turned her stomach as she replayed Yato's visit in her head. The feelings of embarrassment gave way to guilt, eventually morphing into indignation and cycling back to the beginning again.
How could Yato barge in on me like that! I can't believe I let him sit with me while I was practically NAKED. And I can't believe how he acted over Fujisaki kissing me! It's not like a really wanted him to!
It dawned on her, then and there as she calmed herself, admitting that she did not accept her senpai's advances. The person she wished had taken her first kiss was the delinquent deity with eyes that flooded her soul in a deluge of emotions.
He had been the one who saved her on countless occasions. He would run to her first when there was something important, always considering her feelings, and going out his way to be there. It was stifling at times, how overwhelmingly sensitive he could be. But it was refreshing to be so cared for.
He needs me…and I..?
Her pencil hit the thick notepad with a soft thud. The rosy-eyed half-phantom left her body behind in the chair as she leaped out the window and raced over the rooftops.
The weight of her body may have been shed, but she felt the electric pulse of her soul, vibrant and alive as she sprinted along the telephone wires toward the shrine.
Yato had begun nodding off as a pair of eyes like spring sakura blooming invaded his thoughts. He clung to his pillow, as he sighed, wishing it to be a warm, familiar body.
"Hiyori…" he let loose her name from his lips, slipping into slumber.
"Yato," came a gentle reply.
Yato's eyes flew open and there, on the window sill sat the one person he wanted to see.
Hiyori's cheeks had flushed pink at the sound of her name coming from him.
"W-what are you doing here? I thought you were still mad at me from earlier," he just blurted out, in all his honesty.
"I came to apologize, actually," she said with a grimace as she recalled her behavior. "I overreacted earlier. And I…I am thankful that you are here to protect me."
Yato merely blinked, dumbfounded. His face warmed at her words. At long last he was getting confirmation.
"Hiyori," he began, trying to find the right words. Don't fuck this up. "I…You know I would anything for you. Even to Yomi and back, I would go all over again, if it was protect you."
Sliding herself off the window sill, Hiyori came to sit next to her god-of-choice. She nodded at him.
"And I will be here to call your name and bring you back," she retorted. "Yato..?"
He paused and just looked at her as he took her hand in both of his.
"Please don't make me go back to my old life. Please...let me stay," she pleaded softly.
Her gaze had a gravitational pull, drawing him toward the inevitable. Their noses brushed as eyes slid shut. Warm breath mingled, tempering their lips for the soft contact that followed. They pressed into each other for a single tender moment before parting.
The enamored immortal leaned his forehead against hers.
"Then I guess we're in it for the long haul."
