Surely the smell of coffee will wake her up. Hikaru thought, regarding the tightly curled lump of his best friend's form on the couch. Even though she was wrapped in a large afgan, he could tell she was still wearing the clothes she had gone out in the night before. With a long sigh, he crossed into the dirty kitchen area of their small apartment and shoved a pile of takeout containers to make room for the coffee maker. He would clean, eventually.
That's what he told himself anyway. But he was sure that Cass and Kaoru, the other two inhabitants of the apartment, told themselves the same thing, yet it would be at least another week before any of them made an effort. The landlord made his inspections on the third week of every month, always on a Wednesday. Even though Cass wasn't technically on the lease, she stayed there often enough to be considered a permanent resident. Hikaru often wondered if she was actually paying rent at her real place.
Hikaru lit a cigarette, letting it dangle from the corner of his mouth as he measured the coffee grinds. Cass liked her coffee strong, Kaoru preferred his on the weaker side. He wasn't sure if Kaoru would be home any time soon, so he measured based on Cass's preferences. Hikaru only drank coffee with copious amounts of cream and sugar, so the strength meant little to him.
He set the machine to brew before going back to the living room. He sat in one of the battered recliners and smoked quietly, observing his surroundings. Their living room was a disaster, as usual. He and his twin had gathered a random assortment of furniture over the years-there was the overstuffed leather couch where Cass was sleeping, the dark blue loveseat that had obviously belonged to a cat owner, and two recliners. One had a dish towel permanently tucked around the seat cushion, an attempt to cover the large tear in the fabric. The seating was arranged around a scratched coffee table that was littered with empty cans and cigarette ashes.
Cass had brought in her own touches over the last several months. She had started staying over more after her most recent relationship had ended, and with that came a semi-new TV that they had precariously mounted to the wall. There were other seemingly random items that she claimed she no longer had room for-the fake potted ficus, a floor lamp, and two end tables. Hikaru knew better than to ask why she no longer had the space for these things.
Their walls were covered in posters. Some covered cracks, others covered holes. Hikaru assumed the carpet had once been white. He stopped trying to clean it after a dozen or so drinks had been spilled. The linoleum in the kitchen wasn't in much better shape.
God, why won't she wake up? Is she breathing? Hikaru's amber eyes rested on Cass. He could faintly see her chest moving. He had no idea when she had gotten there. Frowning, he pulled out his phone and started scrolling through Instagram, ignoring the dozens of notifications he had gotten from the night before. He finally came to a post from Cass, yet another drunken selfie with a less-than coherent caption, timestamped at just after 3 am. It was just after 11 now.
He studied his friend's face in the photo, taking in her sharp features and bright blue eyes, exaggerated by the heavy eyeliner she always wore. Her dark lipstick was smudged, from bottles or kisses or cigarettes, he wasn't sure. Cass had her vices. Not like he was one to talk. Hikaru was a self-described attention whore, something that had garnered him quite the social media and YouTube following. It wasn't a "real" job, but it kept him afloat.
The coffee maker beeped. Hikaru stood, jerking his jeans over his thin hips from where they had fallen once he'd sat down. He needed to eat more to match his gym regimen, he told himself. He also needed to shower more and stop smoking and start a skincare routine. Would he? He told himself he would, of course, first thing tomorrow.
Hikaru slowly carried a full mug of coffee to where Cass was sleeping. "Hey. You need to get up already. I've got shit to do."
"Fuck off." Cass grumbled. Despite her words, she slowly untangled herself from the blanket, her skinny limbs emerging from the bundle she had created around her frame. She looked up at Hikaru with a dazed expression. "The hell's wrong with you?"
"Don't you have work?" Hikaru ignored her question. He sat down at the edge of the couch, holding the coffee toward her.
She rolled her eyes and forced herself into a sitting position. She took the coffee from him, holding it to her lips. "What day is it again?"
"Thursday?" Hikaru checked his phone screen. "No. Tuesday."
"Long night for you too?" Cass grimaced slightly, the coffee burning her tongue as she took a tentative sip.
"Just can't keep up." Hikaru shrugged. The days seemed to blur together more and more lately. It hadn't been long since he'd dropped out of college for the third time, and the lack of routine had caught up to him. It wasn't for lack of intelligence-Hikaru was as smart as they came, school was just a hindrance to his preferred lifestyle. "Where were you?"
"Gabby's. There was some punk band playing." She ran a hand through her dyed black, pixie cut hair. Her eyes widened slightly before she held her hand in front of her face. Her nails, normally long and pointed thanks to acrylics, were short and jagged with varying lengths. "Oh my fuck."
"That looks painful." Hikaru grabbed her hand and examined the damage. Two of her nails were broken to the quick, the others were in only slightly better condition. He knew she'd been particularly fond of her most recent set of nails, black with blood red detailing on the tips. "Who'd you fight?"
"No one." She stood up suddenly, spilling a few drops of coffee to the carpet in the process. Her hand went to the waistband of her tight jeans, where Hikaru knew she kept a 9 mm Glock holstered at nearly all times. Satisfied that it was still there, she calmed slightly and tugged it out of place, putting it on the coffee table. "I remember some chick was smarting off to the bartender. I might've punched her."
Hikaru noted she was wearing one of Kaoru's band shirts. Between the three of them they had more clothes than they knew what to do with. Her large pin-up girl tattoo barely poked out from the hem of her sleeve. "Your hand hurt?"
"Fuck no. My head does." She took a longer drink of coffee and adjusted her shirt over her jeans.
"Then you didn't hit the bitch hard enough." Hikaru smirked. He returned his attention to his phone, finally going through the alerts he'd received from the night before. There was a message from his editor, telling him that another video was ready to review. Texts from Kaoru and Haruhi, both asking if he was awake yet, and the stream of notifications from YouTube and Instagram, alerting him of comments on his posts.
He absently responded to Haruhi and Kaoru, letting them both know that he was awake. He made a note to review the video as soon as he figured out what Cass was up to for the day. She was his best friend, sure, but she could be a lot to handle when she was in one of her moods. He worked his way through his emails, listening to the sounds of Cass's boots thudding on the floor as she moved around the kitchen. After a few moments he heard the sound of a trash bag being flung open.
"What're you doing?" He called, not looking up from his phone. "Don't you have work?"
"What time's it? My phone's dead and this damn oven is never right." Cass started shoving containers into the bag, attempting to clear space from the small counters.
"11:22." Hikaru shifted his weight and turned around to face the kitchen. "Seriously, what are you doing?"
Cass waved the now half-full bag in her hands. Her pale face was flushed, bringing more attention to her smeared makeup. "Cleaning. I've got like, four hours and I need space if I'm going to cook us something."
"Do we even have food here?" He made no attempt to try and help her. The two of them were alike in the sense that they insisted on doing most things alone. He knew she'd yell at him if I tried, just as he would yell at her. "And is that four hours before you're late, or four hours until you actually have to be there?"
"Fuck off, Hika. I'm never late." Her face twisted in laughter before she could complete the sentence. She continued clearing off the counter. "I bought some stuff last night. I don't get paid again until Friday, so it ain't much."
"What'd you spend?" Hikaru narrowed his eyes. He knew she didn't make much at her kitchen job. He had a feeling that she did other work on the side, but she wouldn't tell him if he asked.
Cass ignored the question. She turned her back to him and started humming, a clear indication that she wanted to be left to her own devices. He watched her work for a moment. She was a flurry of activity, despite what he knew had to be a killer hangover. She wasn't like his twin, who would use any excuse to stay in bed for an entire morning.
Cass had quite literally ran into their lives nearly two years ago. Hikaru and Kaoru had just left a bar in a less than desirable part of town when they heard footsteps rapidly approaching behind them. She had long hair back then, Hikaru remembered, and it was bright purple. She immediately wrapped her arm around a startled Kaoru once she had caught up and began tugging him along with her.
"Look, I totally respect you and your life decisions babe, but there's about six asshats in there who were about to follow you." She spoke as quickly as she moved. "Great eyeshadow, by the way."
Kaoru's face had turned red. Hikaru had known how hard it had been for his twin to finally go out in feminine clothing. He had watched him painstakingly pick out an outfit and style his shoulder-length orange hair before finally agreeing to leave their apartment. He was still noticeably male, thanks to his Adam's apple and lack of curves.
"I'll show you places that'll be more accepting, okay? That bar just attracts the wrong type. Where do you live? Close? My place might be closer." She finally gave Hikaru a sideways glance. "I'm Cassandra. Cassie. Cass. Whatever's easy."
"Are you drunk?" Hikaru grabbed his brother's arm in an attempt to pull him away from Cass. "What the hell are you on about?"
"Dude, you've got to pay more attention." She looked over her shoulder. "See for yourself."
Hikaru and Kaoru followed her gaze to see a group of men leaving the bar. They were walking intentionally in their direction. Kaoru whimpered softly while Hikaru's temper flared. He could sense the group's malice towards them based on their body language. He knew he had to get Kaoru away from them before things got worse.
"Cass, we've got a fifteen minute walk from here." Hikaru's hand twisted around Kaoru's.
"Take my keys." Cass reached into her cleavage and tugged out a set of glittery keys. "Go. I live on the next street over, the Vandermont building. Third floor, room 10."
Kaoru's voice was soft. "Are you going to be okay?"
"They try anything and I'll shoot them. Fuckers don't scare me." She half-smiled. "I'll meet you two there soon." With that, she released her hold on Kaoru's waist and turned away, her hair whipping over her shoulders.
"Kao." Hikaru tugged Kaoru forward, trying to ignore the voices behind them. He forced Kaoru to move quickly, despite knowing his brother was adjusting to wearing heels. He could hear Cass's taunts slowly fade as they rounded the corner, eventually finding her building thanks to the dimly lit street lights.
Her apartment was a piece of work, Hikaru decided once they had gotten in. It was a typical studio loft, and Cass had seemingly attempted to fill every inch of space with eclectic decor. The couch was covered in a bright pink throw blanket, and from the look of it she often slept there rather than the bed. The space smelled like incense and stale cigarette smoke.
Kaoru was shaken. Hikaru could easily detect his twin's stress, even without him vocalizing his feelings. Twenty three years of knowing a person made reading their emotions simple, especially when it was your own twin. As much as Hikaru had wanted to confront the men himself, he knew that letting his temper flare would have only stressed his twin further.
"Come here, Kao. Shoes off." Hikaru gently took Kaoru's arm and led him to the couch. Kaoru unsteadily lowered himself down and tucked his knees beneath him, pulling his simple grey skirt around him. "You okay?"
"I shouldn't have done this." Kaoru covered his face with his hands. Hikaru found himself grateful that Kaoru had decided against wearing the bodycon dress he had originally picked out. While the black lacy top he wore was thin, it still offered him more protection on his shivering frame. "I should've kept this between us. I'm so fucking stupid, Hika."
"Those bastards are the stupid ones, Kao." Hikaru growled. He struggled to keep his temper controlled. He had known Kaoru had a deep-seeded feminine side long before he started cross dressing. In fact, he hadn't been surprised when Kaoru first started experimenting with makeup and growing out his hair. "Who gives a fuck about what they think? You should do what makes you happy."
What bothered him the most, however, was that this was a world completely unknown to him. He knew what Kaoru needed when his heart was broken and when work got under his skin, but this was a different situation entirely. Hikaru could easily beat the shit out of anyone who dared harm Kaoru, but how could he help him recover from the aftermath?
"Do you think Cassandra has anything to drink?" Kaoru asked softly. "Think she's alright?"
"Did you see her, Kao? She's either a trained assassin or completely insane." Hikaru managed a chuckle. He walked to Cass's small kitchen, just feet away from her living area. He found an empty glass on the counter. "Tap water alright? I feel kinda strange going through her fridge."
Kaoru made a small affirmative noise. Hikaru returned to Kaoru, full glass in hand, and sat beside him. His twin curled into his side, a familiar position for the two of them. They stayed there in silence for a few minutes, with Hikaru absently running this thumb over Kaoru's exposed collarbone.
The silence was eventually broken by a series of loud thumps against the door. Hikaru jumped, the noise startling him. He tentatively broke away from Kaoru and moved to the door. He could see Cass's bright purple hair through the peephole.
"The door was unlocked, you know." Hikaru said as he swung the door open, irritation in his voice.
"Y'all could've turned the lights on." Cass was unphased by Hikaru's tone. She flipped the light switch, illuminating the small space with white Christmas lights that lined the entire room. Hikaru took the chance to look her over. She was pretty, sure, with angular features and a thin frame. She stood nearly at his height, thanks to a pair of bright red platform heels. He could see her phone peeking out of her cleavage. "Your sister okay?"
"Yeah." Hikaru whispered, having never referred to Kaoru as his sister, even when he wore feminine clothing.
"Twins, right? I assumed. You two look so similar." She flashed Hikaru a somewhat shy smile. He noticed a bruise forming on her jaw, her heavy makeup somewhat obscuring the mark. She crossed the room and knelt in front of Kaoru, who regarded her with wide eyes. "Hey. You ain't gotta worry about them. Just a bunch of sick assholes."
"How'd you know they were going to follow me?" Kaoru's voice held a heavy amount of emotion that Hikaru couldn't quite identify.
"I was sitting close enough to hear them." Cass shrugged. "I'm glad you weren't."
"What'd they say?"
"Nothing you're gonna hear from me." She tentatively took his hand in hers. "Look, I don't know what you're going through, but I know how cruel people can be. I might not be there to keep you from hearing it next time, so you can't let it get to you."
Kaoru stared at the floor, no longer able to meet her eyes. Instead he focused on one of many burn marks in the carpet, wondering if being himself would be worth facing the hateful bigots still remaining in this world. "They hurt you."
"No they didn't." That was the first of many times Cass would lie to them. "What should I call you?"
Hikaru watched the scene unfold as Kaoru released Cass's hand and slowly touched the bruise on her face, his fingertips just barely brushing her skin. Hikaru saw something in Kaoru's eyes that he thought he'd never witness again. Kaoru rarely connected to anyone. It took years of knowing Hikaru's girlfriend, Haruhi, before he grew comfortable around her. But there was a wall that fell on that night.
"My name's Kaoru."