AUTHOR NOTE~
UGH this is such a late update... I really wasn't happy with this at all. I just couldn't write it how I wanted it. I exhausted all my resources on future chapters! The only part I am okay with is the news section, since my job is literally writing the news. EZPZ.
I am just eager for the story to progress some! Anyway, enjoy~
"Slow down!" Suzume rushed to Shizuo's side, trying to keep up with his long strides. "W-where are you going?" She huffed, trying to catch her breath.
"I have things I need to do today. You can come along or go home and wait." He responded dryly and proceeded to weave through the crowds.
"Oh... Well I could, help you if you need?" She asked hesitantly, stealing a glance.
"Up to you." A twinge of annoyance. She nodded quickly and continued walking beside him.
They traveled in silence as they headed further away from the masses. She doubted her decision to tag along with him, feeling like nothing but an object in his way. At the same time though, she felt the strong urge to take this opportunity to learn more about him. She couldn't describe it - she was just intrigued.
The area was new to her. She canvassed her surroundings. It didn't has as many as the sensationalized stores that you normally see lining Ikebukuro. Many of the places were local markets or restaurants. A small supermarket came into their view. It was hidden and quite humble. Suzume had never heard of it before, much less seen it. Shizuo walked in without so much as looking back at her.
"O-oh. I guess I'll follow..." She scurried behind him.
The elderly couple at the counter waved to Shizuo as he entered, but acknowledged Suzume's presence in skepticism. She politely bowed and smiled to them. "P-pardon me." Her pursuit to keep up with him carried on.
She followed quietly as Shizuo picked up various goods, making sure to not get in his way. She did take note of what he was putting in his basket - an abnormal amount of sweets, instant foods, and milk.
She smiled as she watched the tall man make his way down the aisles. It was nice not being alone in the store, even if it wasn't her doing the shopping. It felt like she was back home with her family, like a kid again.
"Do you… need help carrying those?" She knew it was a stupid question, but she felt lousy just walking alongside him. He hadn't said a word to her since she offered him help. An urge to break the stiff atmosphere took over.
"I live just two blocks down. It's fine." He continued his gaze forward. She just nodded as she struggled to keep at his side.
'That didn't get us anywhere...' She folded her arms in subtle defeat. 'How are we even going to spend the rest of the day?' A sinister smile flashed through her memory. 'Tom told me not to mention him, but...' Events from the night prior reignited along with that thought. Deciding not to go down that path, she tucked her face in the shadows of her hair. She trailed off in her own thoughts, not even noticing them arriving at his building. Hesitation suddenly triggered by the reality of what was happening.
"U-um… Heiwajima-san. I can head home until Tom wants to meet up… If you want?" Despite her words, she continued following him up the stairs.
"There aren't any stations near here." He looked down at his pocket, then held some of the bags in his mouth as he felt around for his keys. He glanced back to her, still with a mouthful of bags. "Don't worry about it." He said, muffled by plastic. "And call me Shizuo." With his words, she followed him inside. The sight of this side of Shizuo made her smile. He looked so normal and innocent, not even thinking about the fact he invited a girl he barely knew in to his home.
His apartment was clean and rather nice, though it lacked decorations. Sparse indeed. The furniture he DID have looked new and unused. But it was very modern, sleek and fresh.
"You can sit on the couch, watch TV… Help yourself." He called from his kitchen as he put away the groceries. "I'm going to shower and change before we head out."
"Okay…" She watched him vanish into his room and shut the door. The tension released from her body, slumping down on the couch and sighing. She got it now... It was more like she wasn't even there to him. Which was fine with her. Better to not feel like a burden.
She hadn't been to anyone's place since moving to Ikebukuro, not even Tom or her coworkers. 'To think the first place I visit is Heiwajima's.'
To pass the time, she took Shizuo's offer on watching TV. The channel was already set to a national news station. 'That's interesting.' She brought her knees up and rested her head on them, deciding to just watch it.
Gang violence continues to rock rural eastern parts of Russia in the rising presence of independent organizations... Nearly 50 civilians were caught in the middle of gunfire in one town. Among them, women and children unaffiliated with the gangs. With no end in sight, government is attempting to intervene, but the numbers are just too great to handle.
Her nerves only grew as she continued watching the broadcast. 'If I had stayed...' She vigorously shook her head. 'No, I can't think like that.' But she couldn't shake the awful feeling.
"Hey. You okay?" A figure loomed over her. Shizuo had returned without her noticing. He stood to the side of the couch, slightly leaning in while looking at her. He wasn't wearing his signature sunglasses. It was a new look for him. She was able to get a good look at his face, which was much softer than she imagined. "You can change the channel you know."
"Oh, yeah…" She watched him as he sat down beside her and grabbed the remote. He flipped through several channels, stopping on an entertainment channel showing an interview.
"Hanejima Yuhei. He's really blown up lately." She crossed her legs on the couch and listened in on the interview. Shizuo remained silent.
"Hmm…" She turned her attention to Shizuo, as if a thought just hit her. "You know…"
Shizuo's instinctively clenched his fist by his side, out of her sight. "He seems like a great kid. It's refreshing to see such a young and talented person."
"Oh. Uh, yeah." He relaxed back against the couch.
She chuckled. "You a huge fan or something?"
"No, nothing like that…"
"I haven't seen too many of his movies, only a few honestly. He was great don't get me wrong." She averted to gaze back to the TV screen. "I mostly see him on programs like this. I can just tell he's an okay guy, you know?" Shizuo's body language told her he knew what she meant, in place of his lack of words.
Half an hour passed, and the next program was already about to start. They sat peacefully, eyes still glued to the television.
"We still have a while until we're supposed to meet up with Tom, right?"
"Yeah, kinda."
"There's this new bakery in town. My coworkers were telling me they have amazing warm lava cakes. Any filling you could ever want!" She got overwhelmed by excitement. "If you don't have any other plans, we can check it out before we head to dinner! I-I mean, only if you want to." She smiled warmly at him. "It's on me."
"Sure." He stood up abruptly. "Let's go."
"Ah! I'm so excited!" They set down at a booth next to a window. Suzume took no time cutting into her cake. "It's so good!"
Shizuo gazed outside as more snowflakes fell to the sidewalks.
"You really like sweets, don't you Shizuo-kun?" She beamed while continuing to eat.
"The taste is nice." He looked back to his cake and continued.
"Mm." She nodded. "Me too. I really enjoy making them more." She rested her chin in her palm and looked around the restaurant. "It's been my dream to open a shop like this."
"Really?" The two continued to chat on and off while finishing their treats. Not saying too much, but not saying too little.
"What made you move to Ikebukuro, of all places in Tokyo?"
"Oh…" She looked down. The question caught her off guard. "Well, my dad lives here. So I figured I might as well."
"Your dad…" He pondered on her words for a few moments, occasionally glancing back and forth between the table and Suzume. "Dad…"
"Isn't it close to the time Tom wanted to meet up?" She nervously tried to put him off his stride. "With how long it would take to get there, we should probably leave now. Don't you think?"
"Oh, yeah." He stood up and grabbed the receipt.
"H-hey! Wait! The check!" Suzume couldn't react quick enough to stop him from paying.
"Let's go." He called out from the door. She followed, defeated.
"I said it would be on me." She crossed her arms and walked beside the tall man.
"Take it as a thanks for showing me that place." He responded plainly. "It was good."
"Mm. Well thanks then!" She shot him a grin. "It was pretty amazing! The warm fudge was really a good choice I think…" The two continued down the street, talking about their favorite desserts and treats.
'This is nice.' She thought to herself, happily strolling down the sidewalk beside him.
"Since it's cold, let's just go inside and wait for him." He opened the door and motioned for her to follow.
"Shizuo, Tom!" Someone inside called as they entered. "Wait, no Tom? Who's this?" Shizuo sat down in front of him at the bar around the cooking area.
"We're waiting on Tom. This is Suzume."
"H-hello" She bowed and took a seat beside Shizuo.
"It's nice meeting you miss." He returned her bow. "It's been a slow day. Not many people wanting to come out this far in the cold I guess. It's a pretty rare site to see snow falling in 'Bukuro!"
"It's too cold." Shizuo handed Suzume a menu.
"If you'd wear more clothes it wouldn't be so bad Shizuo."
"Yeah, yeah." He sighed and reached for his pocket.
"Miss you're far too kind to be involved with those two delinquents. Get out while you can." The shop owner joked and handed her a glass of water. "It's especially no good tagging along with this one." He cupped his hand over his mouth to hide it from Shizuo, but still said it loud enough for him to hear.
She laughed lightly and looked over to Shizuo, who was staring at his phone with an unreadable expression. "Shizuo-san?" She leaned over to him. "Is everything okay?"
"Ah. Uh. Yeah. Tom, he isn't coming I guess." He snapped his phone shut, rather forcefully and placed his order. "I will have my usual."
Suzume felt her phone vibrate shortly after.
[Hehe (✿◠‿◠)]
'Dammit Tom...'
Shizuo crushed the unfortunate cup in his hands.
'Oh.' She didn't flinch, but carefully observed his actions with a side glance. 'I almost forgot how strong he was.'
The shop owner talked to Shizuo as he prepared their food. He was obviously in an... off mood, and the man picked up on it quick. It was mostly for Suzume's sake - he could see Shizuo pushing his limit.
"I'm sorry Tom bailed on you." She said meekly while twirling her noodles with her chopsticks. "I feel bad. I tailed along all day. I'm sure that's not how you wanted to spend your day off…"
Shizuo suddenly returned to his normal, calm state. "Don't worry about it." The shop owner eyed the two of them. "I didn't mind. It was a nice day." He continued eating his ramen.
"O...kay."
"I'm impressed! That was our spiciest on the menu! You don't see that often." The shop owner boastfully said as Suzume and Shizuo stood up.
"Mm!" She beamed. "I love spicy foods. It was great. Thank you!"
"How can people actually enjoy spicy?" Shizuo grunted.
"You come back any time. With or without the hooligans." The restaurant owner ignored Shizuo's snide remark.
"I will!" She waved and followed Shizuo out.
"I can actually catch a train tonight." She stretched her hands behind her as they headed for the nearest station. Shizuo didn't respond.
'Hmm.'
"Seems we had ourselves a little date night. Aren't you supposed to eat dessert AFTER dinner though?" She teased, trying to spark a response.
"WHAT?!" He barked. "It's not like that! We were supposed to meet Tom." He said defensively.
"I'm kidding." She pulled out her phone and looked at Tom's message again. "I just wonder what he was doing."
"Dunno." They stopped in front of the station, flooded with commuters going in and out. "Guess we'll be seeing each other more now." He suddenly reached for her phone. Suzume frantically exited out of the text before the phone was fully in Shizuo's control. After a few moments, he handed it back with a new contact on the screen. "Text me so I'll have your number. Call if you need anything or can't get in touch with Tom." With that, he headed towards his apartment.
She stood in front of the station for a while, looking at his number. Her eyes wandered to the time. "Oh! The train." She rushed inside.
'I don't know what you were trying to pull tonight, but we still need to talk.'
[Yeah, I got it. Coffee tomorrow?]
'If you plan to actually show up.'
[Ouch... Trust me. I'll be there this time. It was a fluke.]
'Whatever.' She smiled as she sent the text. There's no way she could actually stay mad at him.
'11:00 tomorrow, okay? I'M COUNTING ON YOU!'
[You got it!]
She closed her phone and sat back in her seat on the train. "Oh!" She pulled her phone back up before slipping it in her purse.
'Thanks for spending the day with me! I had a lot of fun. Any time you want to go back to that bakery, let me know.'
"Suzume!" Tom called out as she walked into the coffee shop.
"Hey!" She smiled and took the seat across from him.
"Sooo~" He coyly eyed her. "How was last night?"
"It was nice! That ramen shop is really good. I'd like to ACTUALLY go with you some day." She pouted.
"Hmm…" He leaned back in his chair and thought for a moment. "Say Suzume, are you seeing anyone?"
"W-W-WHAT?!" She sputtered. "N-no. I'm not. I've um… Never dated, actually." She dropped her head and quickly bowed, somewhat jokingly. "Forgive me. I don't mean to disappoint you."
"Ah." Tom sighed. "I see. A classic tale indeed."
"What do you mean by that?"
"A young beautiful woman doesn't know the true meaning of love." Tom said in a mocking manner. "So she goes on an epic adventure to find true love. In this case, the adventure is Ikebukuro." Tom chuckled. "I'm pretty sure it's almost exactly like something I've read."
"That's ridiculous." She stated firmly and sipped her coffee. "I definitely know what love is." She looked out the window and the people passing by. "I love my family. I love my friends. It's clear what I feel for them is love…" She paused. "Wait, that's not even what I'm here to talk about. Don't change the subject."
"Fine fine." He rested his elbows on the table and smiled. "Go on."
"I need you to tell me about this Izaya. I think it's important for me to know." Her serious tone took Tom by surprise.
"Why, what happened?" He took the hint. "Did he do anything to you?"
"No." She looked down at her coffee. "Well I mean… Shizuo was there. Everything was fine… It's just…"
"I see." He looked at her intently and thought for a moment. "I think I get the idea. Don't worry. You don't have to talk about it." He sighed again. "Him and Shizuo have a rocky past, but I don't really know why. It's been like that since high school. Now, Orihara-san is an informant based in Shinjuku. He often comes to Ikebukuro to just make things difficult." He looked out the window. "I just don't understand why he's involved you -" He stopped himself. "Well, I guess I know exactly way." Tom leaned closer to her, with a serious look on his face. "Listen, if anything happens don't hesitate to call me or Shizuo. We'll be right there."
The same fear she felt when Izaya showed up at her apartment came rushing back. She stiffly nodded, unable to do anything else. Tom stood up and smiled.
"Let's go do something." He motioned for her to stand up. "It isn't anything to lose sleep over. Let's go!" Her body relaxed as she nodded again.
"Mm! Alright."
'I trust Tom. He's right. Everything will be okay.'