The first thing Kaminaga realized when he opened his eyes was that he was still tired from last night's events, the photographer yawning and closing his eyes so he could return to sleep.

The second thing he realized was that, when he snapped his eyes back open, there was a bird nestled onto one of his empty pillows. Kaminaga blinked, his eyes still bleary from sleep, and he stared at the bird with curiosity. It was gray in color, with various markings along its wings and breast.

As if challenging his stare, the bird tilted its head and ruffled its feathers before gently cooing. It didn't look frightened of his form at all, so it must not have been a wild bird. So how did it get in?

Kaminaga rolled over to his side and checked the window of the bedroom, noting that it was closed. Okay, so it didn't fly in from there. Kaminaga glanced at the bird again and noticed it was a familiar breed, having seen its kind in the park on his way to and from work. "You're a pigeon."

It seemed to coo in confirmation, its eyes squeezing shut before breathing in and shaking its feathers again. It didn't look like it was going to move any time soon, which left Kaminaga to wonder if Tazaki was aware there was a bird hiding away in his house.

Sighing, Kaminaga slowly sat up in bed and stood, walking towards the door to the bedroom. It was kept cracked open by Tazaki after he left and made sure Kaminaga could use the shower correctly. It was to ensure he could easily leave the room in case he wanted anything from the kitchen downstairs.

Stepping out, Kaminaga glanced in both directions of the hall before his eyes settled on Tazaki's room across from his. The door was wide open and Kaminaga could see into the room well enough to know the bed was perfectly made and there was no trace of the house's owner.

Kaminaga had believed he left for work until he heard cookware clattering coming from downstairs. That meant Tazaki was in the kitchen, at least. It wasn't until he was half-way down the flight of stairs did he smell food being prepared. The descent to the kitchen was enough to coax Kaminaga's stomach into responding to the aroma as he rounded the corner.

Tazaki was seen standing nearby the toaster as he cooked whatever was frying in the pan that smelled so good. The table in the kitchen that once held brownies was now decorated with empty plates and glasses of juice that reminded Kaminaga of those breakfast commercials that advertised cereal.

"Good morning."

Kaminaga turned his head at the greeting, realizing that Tazaki had probably heard him walk in. He was still preoccupied with the food on the stove, his eyes never leaving his task. "Good morning. I'd thought you'd be at work by now."

Tazaki hummed, taking a spatula and scraping off whatever was in the pan and flipping it over. Kaminaga caught the sight and realized it was eggs. "Not everyone gets up at the crack of dawn for work." The toaster beside him released four pieces of bread and he quickly transferred them to the plates at the table.

"Do you need any help?" Kaminaga didn't want to just stand around and watch him if Tazaki needed an extra hand in the kitchen. He had almost no experience with morning meals himself, since he always picked up his breakfast at a nearby coffee shop. However, food was food, and Kaminaga at least made himself dinner at home, so how hard could it be?

Tazaki was back managing the eggs again, which seemed to already be done. He turned the stove off and slid the eggs onto the plates to join with the toast. "You can help by eating. Unfortunately, these are all I know how to make."

Kaminaga caught the hint of amusement in his voice, which gave him a bit of relief knowing they were both lacking in the cooking department. He almost took up the offer before he remembered what he was supposed to tell him. "Oh, right. I'm not sure how it happened, but you've got a bird that's flying around in your house. Well, not flying, per se, but it's loose in the guest bedroom. I wasn't sure if it got in through an open window somehow."

The news didn't even faze him. Tazaki was dumping the cookware into the sink and washing the grease off. "That's probably Abigail."

"Abigail?" Kaminaga repeated.

"She doesn't like returning to loft right after eating, so she often flies around and settles somewhere for a few hours until she's ready to return. She likes the bedrooms because they're enclosed and a bit warmer compared to the rest of the house, so that's probably why she was in there."

"So, she's your bird?" Kaminaga didn't even think someone could legally own a pigeon.

"One of them, anyway." Tazaki left the pan in the sink for it to soak before be moved to the table, ushering Kaminaga to join him. "I usually have the rest come inside for a bit when they feel like it, but I figured you wouldn't enjoy having them flock about. They can get a little rowdy sometimes."

Kaminaga took his offer and sat across from him, still unsure about the idea of keeping a pigeon as a pet. Breakfast did look good, though. "Thanks for the food." He supposed he should have thanked him for everything, but breakfast was a start.

Tazaki hummed in response, already biting into the toast.

Kaminaga followed his example and started with the toast, tasting the melted butter and grainy texture as he chewed. It was quiet between them once they began eating, but it was a comfortable silence. Kaminaga would have thought the meal to be awkward to some extent, though he didn't find Tazaki's presence to be a burden.

He thought back to everything that happened last night. His legs were sore from running and the cuts on his body still stung even after he had cleaned them. He replayed the moment where he had stopped Tazaki's car and remembered pointing the gun at him, recalling the genuine urge to killhim over something as stupid as escaping town.

The memory pushed in a new wave of guilt and suddenly breakfast didn't seem so appealing anymore.

"I know I overcooked the eggs, so you don't have to eat them."

Kaminaga looked up to see Tazaki looking back at him, a fork hovering between his plate and his mouth. Pieces of egg were scooped up, some of it dangling from the edge as he held that position from across the table.

He didn't know whether to ignore the sight or laugh at it, so he went for something in the middle. "No, the eggs are fine!" He wanted to reassure Tazaki that his cooking wasn't to blame for his mood swing.

Tazaki lifted a brow at him, his hand lowering the fork back onto the plate. "You haven't even touched them."

Kaminaga sighed. "I'm sure the eggs are fine. The toast is great." He at least ate two pieces by now, so Tazaki couldn't use that against him.

It seemed to appease Tazaki a bit, but he remained skeptical as he returned to eating. It looked as though he didn't want the conversation to drop, but a shrill ringing sound had filled the air instead.

Tazaki reached for the phone in his pocket and stared at the screen a moment longer than necessary, deciding to answer. "Hello?"

The other end was silent from what Kaminaga could hear from his distance, but the look on Tazaki's face proved that someone on the other end was talking. A few seconds later, he was being handed the phone.

Kaminaga placed it to his ear, hoping it was who he thought it was. "Odagiri?"

"I just got your message! Where are you right now?"

The voice on the other end sounded panicked, something that Kaminaga wasn't quite used to, but he would have been lying if he said he wasn't glad to hear it. "I'm sorry I didn't tell you before, I just wanted to—"

"Your apartment is being investigated as we speak!"

Kaminaga's words caught in his throat.

"The police have filed you as a missing person, Kaminaga!"

Kaminaga stared down at his plate as his mind processed the information, his eyes blinking once before he could manage a word. "What?" He wasn't missing at all. The mafia hadn't kidnapped him or killed him, but he guessed that the way his apartment looked had given police the impression that he had been.

If Odagiri was telling him this, then that meant his division was assigned to his disappearance case. "What's happening? What are they going to do?"

He heard Odagiri sigh through the phone, most likely running his fingers through his hair. It was a nervous habit he never seemed to shake. "Your apartment is a mess. Someone broke down your door and there's glass everywhere. We're searching for anything that might have been taken—"

"Nothing's been stolen. As far as I'm concerned, anyway." Kaminaga bit his lip, debating on whether he should inform Odagiri about the truth. If the police were already investigating, then that meant reporters were going to be flooding the area, if they weren't already. The whole reason he fled was to ensure his own life.

"Kaminaga, tell me what's going on."

Odagiri may have returned his call, but that didn't mean he was no longer in danger. Kaminaga didn't want to put any more people in harm's way if the mob was still waiting for him to return. "I can't tell you—"

"The hell you can't—"

"I promise I'll come clean after all of this blows over." He could hear the huff Odagiri made at the statement, but he knew he would trust him to keep his word, at least. "I want you to know that everything is fine and I wasn't kidnapped. I ran into some trouble and I ended up bringing you into this mess, and I'm sorry."

"What am I supposed to do in the meantime, huh? Just tell my colleagues that this is just some big misunderstanding?" Odagiri sounded more upset now than before, but he supposed he should have seen it coming.

Kaminaga cringed at his next words. "Just pretend this call never happened."

The noise that came from Odagiri was proof enough that he was ready to throttle him. Most likely with a lecture, or worse. Before it came to that, Kaminaga was quick to end the call the moment Odagiri replied. From the sound of it, Kaminaga's intuition was correct. The call cut what suspiciously sounded like a curse from Odagiri, but he had held the phone too far from his ear to properly listen in time.

"I take it he didn't agree with your plan?" Tazaki had abandoned his breakfast in favor of listening to their conversation. At least, one side of it. Whatever they were discussing, Tazaki had a pretty good idea what it was about.

Kaminaga passed the phone back to him and sighed, slumping into his chair and rubbing his eyes. "It was a stupid plan." Kaminaga dropped his hand from his face and stared down at the plate in front of him. "I don't know how I'm going to pull it off."

Tazaki stabbed a clump of eggs with his fork. His friend on the phone had identified himself as Odagiri and detective from some bureau in the city before Tazaki had decided to just hand the phone over. His guess was that this Odagiri wasn't happy with Kaminaga's sudden disappearance. "What did he say?"

"My situation is officially classified as a missing persons case."

Tazaki furrowed his brows. "I see."

"… And I'm planning for it to stay that way."

Tazaki stopped, his hand stilled. "Oh."

"Not forever," Kaminaga was quick to add, sensing Tazaki's unease. "I just need a little more time until this blows over and those mobsters forget about me. Until then, I need to remain in hiding." He wasn't sure how long it would be, or if his plan would even work, but it was worth a shot. At the very least, he probably wouldn't have people stalking around his apartment anymore.

"What about your shop? Aren't you taking over for your uncle?"

Kaminaga frowned, feeling as though his idea was already falling apart. "I-I'll have to close it for a while."

"Your family?" Tazaki leaned over the table, as if trying to make him think more clearly about his decision. "What are you going to do when they find out you're gone?"

Kaminaga wasn't sure. The whole point in hiding was to erase his trail and keep who he loved safe, but making his family worry about him wasn't part of the plan. He hoped they wouldn't send some kind of search party to look for him. He wasn't sure how long he could handle it if they went that far.

His uncle's health was bad enough. He didn't want to cause his family more grief. However, if his disappearance would ensure that they would remained unharmed, he was ready for the consequences. If he were to return to his side of town, he would have to hide himself and keep his tracks hidden until they would tire and give up. For now, the only one he could contact was Odagiri. "I know I haven't thought this through, but I think I can make this work. I just need to time and a plan."

Tazaki paused and corrected himself in his seat, pushing his plate of breakfast away from him to indicate that he was finished. His fork was set down and his eyes were on Kaminaga. "Doing this will be suicide, you know that, right?"

"I am aware." Kaminaga almost died fighting for his life earlier that morning. If he was being honest with himself, he couldn't think of any other way that wouldn't put his own life at risk. "If I don't do this, your life will also be in danger."

"I can handle myself." Tazaki almost looked indifferent to his comment as he stood from his chair and placed the empty plate in the sink. "Those people are after you, not me. If I somehow get caught helping you, it'll be my own fault."

Kaminaga stopped. "Helping me?"

"I thought that was what I was doing?" He turned on the faucet and let the water soak the plate, washing away what was left of the food before he began scrubbing. "I don't lend my home out to people and expect to just sit back and watch the action unfold. You need help. I'm offering it."

"You could die."

"So could you."

Kaminaga pursed his lips. Tazaki was being difficult on purpose. He had already endangered him enough by staying in his home for the night.

As if reading his thoughts, Tazaki gave him a look that reminded Kaminaga of an upset parent. "I know you don't have any other place to stay. If you did, you wouldn't have carjacked me in the first place." He placed the dish in the washing machine next to him and turned off the water. "Face it: you need my help."