..gentle chestnut brown hair…

...vibrant brown eyes…

"It's a pleasure to meet you Masayoshi Shido," a soft voice greeted him. The young man felt his heart skip a beat.

"I am..."

"I am Goro Akechi," the boy gracefully bowed.

Shido leaned back in his chair and held his head high. His hands gripped his armchair. "Congratulations on winning the competition at your school, now you can have lunch with me as your prize."

What was the competition again?

This boy...thirteen-fourteen...seemed so familiar, Held a sweet smile that lured him in, encouraging him to get closer and tell a delectable secret. Goro Akechi. Akechi Goro. Akechi...Akechi...where did he hear that name from?

Shido stopped rummaging through his mind for the lost memories and returned his focus to this high schooler.

"That's wonderful! I was quite nervous about the speech competition at the festival…" an embarrassed chuckle followed by a gloved hand pushing back a strand of straight hair, "...The prize-um...meeting you is one of the biggest moments in my life that I've been striving towards."

Shido hummed, pretending to care. He was interested in this boy's parents, not the boy himself. Perhaps an old partner of his he dumped in the past. The "cleaner" can be messy when he did his job. Shido needs to find a way to get to the metaverse and eliminate enemies discreetly. That would make things easier. It would leave less of trail towards him. He can't do it on his own. Not while he's moving up the ladder in his current party.

Even that is taking forever.

"I'm glad a young man such as yourself-" a blush bloomed on the boy's cheeks, "-is interested in politics. Most in your generation is more focused on playing around or staying home."

Akechi nodded grimly in agreement, "Yes, that is the case with most middle and high schoolers nowadays. But I'm not your average student."

Something flashed in the boy's eyes.

Or was it Shido's imagination?

"Well! I shall take you to any place you would like for your prize. An hour lunch and whatever you would like and we can have a conversation about anything."

"Great!" a tilt of a head.

"Great!" That smile seemed to have grown even more.

Shido was plunged into his memories that he prayed to forget.

"Masa-kun!"

"That isn't my name you know," Shido deadpanned. The woman in heels chuckled, a smirk danced on her soft coral lips.

Innocently she pushed back a strand of her long brown hair. "Well that's what your name tag says," she replied.

Shido shook his head, "That was a misprint from like middle school! When are you going to drop it?"

The girl chirped, "Never Masa-kun."

This woman was impossible.

"Let's get pancakes! I hear they opened this new cafe," she sang.

Shido sighed as she gripped his jacket's sleeve and tugged. She pouted, making her smooth face adorably irritable. "Come on! You owe me from last time you ditched me at the station."

"Last I checked you're a forensic scientist at the police department. So you were supposed to be there when I left you. Besides I have a party meeting to go to!"

The woman tugged childishly again. "Pancakes are delicious."

"Party meetings are important."

The woman narrowed her eyes. "Pancakes. Are. Amazing." her calm tone dropped dangerously low.

"Meetings. Are. Important." Shido mimicked.

The two stared at each other. Before Shido could react the woman leaned up and kissed his cheek. "Come on, we only live once you know? Boring meetings happen everyday. But a new cafe will be new only once!"

Shido felt his heart melt. He stared into those beautiful eyes. They glowed in the evening sunlight. The world around him seemed to have faded away except for this woman. A woman demanding pancakes.

"...fine…"

The woman giggled and jumped back. How didn't she break her ankle in those heels? Shido did not know but her smile split her face. "Yes! Let's go!" she grabbed his arm and dragged him from the diet building and towards the train station.

Shido did his best to hide his horror. The teen didn't seem to take notice, or if he did, he kept that all too familiar smile in place. The name Akechi belonged to one person in particular…

Koi Akechi. The woman he once loved so dearly.