A/N: Yes, I know, it's soon, but I had to finish this. Before January passed, lol. It is a holiday special. Also, it's a little late here and I am a little sick so expect some alterations or corrections to happen later.

By the way, I love you people; thank you for the love and the support. On with the story now!

Title: Serendipity
Genre: Romance, Humor, Meet-cute on repeat
Alternative Universe: Modern day, holiday special


After they separated at the station, Tokio went straight at home, left her luggage there and walked the dog, to do his business. Poor pooch was too tired for anything else, so they came back in record time, barely fifteen minutes later. That was when she decided to pick up the phone and call her girlfriends; night out it was. They didn't say no either, so she wore something form-fitting, put on make up and left for a drink or two.

Two became four and by the time she was back, she could say it was almost morning. She hadn't gone out for drinks for a long time and although she did speak with her friends plenty, it was different to do it in person than over the phone. So, they had their fun, unloaded personal issues, made merry and since no one had any children to take care of and dog Hajime was all set till the next morning, she felt justified coming home in the wee hours of the morning.

But, she could only sleep for two hours before the dog came licking her face to wake her up for potty again. Oh well, that's the life of a dog-owner. Wearing her sporty clothes, zipping up her jacket, she took the lease in her hands and her huge puppy was instantly by her side. They left once she had her keys in one pocket and her cell phone in the other, while the dog's credentials as well as hers, were in her hip pouch.

This one was a longer walk than expected. Due to the weather being so nice, she decided to take longer and instead of taking the usual twenty minutes, she took two hours. It was no big deal, she had her credit card with her, she purchased some water and breakfast for herself and the dog seemed to love the sun, combined with the cold air. His fur didn't allow him much movement during summer, but now that's winter—oh boy, he ran full throttle. And since there was a dog park where he could blow off some steam, she let him have at it.

When she came back home, she found with a start, there was a note on her door, by a courier company. Bewildered, she saw they came around nine, but she wasn't there and if she could call them at that number. Going inside with the note in hand, she put it in her pouch as she cleaned the dog's feet with wipes. Then she took out her phone and called. They informed her they could drop by in ten minutes again and she gladly accepted them when they knocked on the door. The man requested but her signature, which she scribbled in a hurry – she saw the man look at dog Hajime a little scared – , and he was out the door.

Curious, regarding the small carton box in her hands, which wasn't all that heavy, she unsealed it as carefully as she could. With surprise, she saw it held a smaller, oblong, leather box in the colour of bright red. She did two things immediately: held it away from dog Hajime who was trying to sniff it like crazy and gave up the carton box as a sacrifice to his curiosity, while opening it gently.

Oh.

Inside it, there was a very elegant, black fountain pen. In the case, next to it, a small container of what obviously was red ink. And just as she popped it open, she could see a small note attached to the box. It read thank you for everything in neat scroll, signed with Eiji and...one. Well, the kanji for one. It must have meant Hajime.

The smile was involuntary. That was very sweet of them. It was most definitely Hajime's initiative, but she wouldn't put it past the kid to have suggested something similar, though she did recall saying to the adult not to feel bad about not getting to pay for that second champagne and how he could always get her stationary as a thank you, if he had to get her something.

She didn't think he would remember.

And how sneaky of him, to go find it while she was trying on clothes. Either that or he ordered it online. But then again, if he didn't have it in his hands by yesterday, it would have been incredibly difficult to have it delivered so early this morning—unless he paid the express fee. Huh. No matter; she was very happy at the gesture; she didn't think he cared. Of course, at the same time, it was a little unfortunate as well, because now she was thinking about him again, even if she'd promised not to.

Sighing, she put the pretty box open, up on her desk, next to her monitor. She was supposed to have her scheduled maintenance today as well as the rest of the issues to fix. Meh.

.

"Thank you for your patronage, madam," the man behind the counter said, little bow following, as he left her purchase on the counter.

She smiled non-committal, put her hand threw the visible hanger and pulled the garment inside with the garment bag off of it. "You're very welcome;" she bowed back and turned to leave, still looking at the man "goodbye sir—"

But she ran into someone, hurting her nose. "Ow! Oh, sorry—..." Her shoulders fell and she snorted with laughter. "Why am I not surprised?" She quipped and stepped to the side, to allow the next person to reach the till, a huge smile on her face. "Hello Hajime."

He mirrored her smile and shook his head. "I didn't even have to guess who it was; not to mention you managed to hit the exact spot my stitches are. A true feat. Even your dog stopped before hurting me."

"I didn't do it on purpose...!

His smirk became mischievous. "I know, but I enjoy the high pitch your voice goes to when you're trying to defend yourself," he teased and he was surprised to find, he was being honest.

"My G—what an idiot." She half-glared half-smiled. "So, what are you here for? And what are the odds, man? So many clothing stores in Kyoto..."

"Ah, but this one is the only one which always caters to my needs; because I'm so tall, people rarely have something in hand—this place does. And I definitely need a suit; maybe two, depending on my mood. See you already bought something."

"Yeah, I got myself a new dress; I'm invited to this thing and I just hated everything in my closet..."

"I see..." he looked to the side, where the men's section was. "I really need to get something new but I hate shopping."

"I love shopping."

"Yeah no kidding, I figured when you dragged both my poor nephew and I around for hours."

"Oh please!"

He still chuckled. "Well, I don't mean to keep you, if you've already finished."

"Actually, I have nowhere I need to be," she shrugged "so if you want help with finding a suit, I'm down. Hajime is well taken care of, already had his walk."

She had no idea why, but she just didn't want to leave, yet. She liked his company; he liked the tone of his voice. It was...calming. Even when he was saying mean things on purpose. And when he simply tilted his head, considering her offer, her smile simply grew.

"Huh; I do hate shopping. Why not?"

Beaming, she gave him a thumbs up and turned about immediately and went to the check out again; once he was finished with his transaction she asked "I'm sorry, sir, can I leave my dress here until I leave?" He kindly took it off of her hands and she went back to Hajime.

"So! Why do you need the suit or suits?" She had already started browsing, feelings fabrics and looking at a multitude of colours. "Everyday; special occasion?"

"Both; but the special occasion is the pressing one because we have a sort of police ball tomorrow night."

"Huh!" She turned to him a little surprised, but her tone held a strange note of disappointment. "And you came shopping only today? You're brave...what if you don't find what you're looking for? Oooh, this one's nice. But this green I bet would also suit you nicely..." She held out a sleeve of the jacket and contrasted its deep shade to his skin tone. "I knew it."

He waved it away. "Don't like green all that much. But to answer your question, well...I had planned to come looking for a suit when you hijacked my nephew and I had to go to Tokyo." She laughed, none the guiltier. "Then, I had to go to the doctor to remove the stitches; but after poking around a little, he decided they needed to be removed after New Years."

"Oooh, that's bad. Are you okay? Are you still hurting?"

"Only when I move in a strange or abrupt way...or someone hits me with their nose." She tried to protest, but contented to a mild glare when he smirked. "So, I was not feeling up to getting undressed in a small confined space after being poked. And that brings us to today. At least, if I find nothing to my liking, I can always come tomorrow morning. But, like I've already said, I always find something here."

"Hmm..." She held out another jacket sleeve. "How about this one?" This one was midnight blue, almost black, really.

"Better."

"Ever the boring one..." she commented, lips pursed. "How about this one? It's blue, but at least you can tell it's blue."

"Hm..."

Oh, he was actually not rejecting it; it was a very fine fabric, good for winter but also autumn and spring, too. It was clean cut and slim fit.

"If you want to try something unusual, you can always go for a dark brown—but if you go with tobacco brown or cafe au lait, leave it for the everyday option."

The what brown? Cafe what? He snorted, visibly stunned. His pause alerted her to his bafflement and rushed to explain – with a smothered smile –. "I mean, light browns and most shades of brown usually are more everyday looks; so is grey, usually. But brown would match with your eyes...just, ugh, can you please say something in reply? Because right now, I could pick out half the men's section for you to try."

"Think of my stab wound, woman."

"Then have an opinion already!"

"Blues I like more; even in your face ones."

"See? We're getting somewhere!" She shook her head. "Was that so hard?"

"Don't complain; this is why you're here."

"You really do hate shopping."

His slow nodding was her answer.

Nearly an hour later, he emerged from the dressing room, yet again in an olive-green suit. She was seated on the black, velvet round stool with her back to the rows of shirts and belts; there were mirrors almost everywhere around them in this private area for men to try on clothes in privacy and, since Hajime was a regular and Tokio a very well-paying on and off customer, they felt no need to rush them. There was a man standing next to her, dressed in a simple suit, advising them on sizes and possible combinations while holding up ties and handkerchiefs that Tokio requested, who, Tokio, was surrounded by suits, back on their hangers, after being worn at least once.

"So?"

He was almost defeated, shrugging at her. She'd made him change so many times, he had started feeling his wound acting up...He couldn't bare it any longer. And some, he had to wear twice. At this point, he was almost wishing he didn't have to put his own clothes back on—simply transport back home.

"I don't know; but don't make me wear another one."

"Oh, I'm so sorry, I exhausted you," she honestly apologised, standing up, hand on her cheeks. "I tend to be overwhelming, I'm sorry." She actually made a sad face at him. "If it's any consolation, I think our objective was met though! You have a relatively small collection of suits to choose from."

"Truth be told..." And it was, objectively, a better lot than when he went with Okita or some other friend, he had to hand it to her.

"Let's make the final selection!" she changed and set the tone in an instant, clapping her hands, trying to get him excited. "If you want my final opinion, I believe, ultimately, you should choose the royal blue one for the tomorrow and the ice grey one for everyday, not this. Now, if you feel like buying three, by all means, go for the burgundy one!"

"You liked that one a lot."

"I did; it was just, ah. But you don't have a grey suit in that shade and if you don't build a good foundation, you don't just go to such an extreme colour and that's the only reason I'm not suggesting it as a first choice."

"The lady is correct," the man gave his two cents "that's how it goes, usually."

"That black one though..."

"You said you have three black ones!" She was absolute. "No more blacks; bring a splash of colour in your life."

"I am not opposed to any of them to be honest, it's just a preference."

"I'm here to push you out of your comfort zone and I'm doing it; away from the black one."

"...fine." He turned to the human display and sighed. "Lady's choice. Bag them while I go change."

"Wait, wait wait; while you were in there, the man told me we can buy vests individually!" He wasn't following; his probing eyebrow forced her to explain. "We can get this lovely burgundy vest, or any other of the vests with these suits."

There was a lack of response, during which, he simply stood there, staring. "No." he flat out rejected, turned about, and went back to change.

She deflated. But then, she rolled her eyes. Men; can't mix and match even if their life depended on it. Deciding by herself then that she was, know what, going to buy them herself and just stuff them in his bags when he wasn't looking, she turned to the man, defiant.

"That fine, camel brown vest? And the burgundy one; can you bag them separately? With their matching handkerchiefs. And the other blue tie and this one," she picked a burgundy without pattern. "I'll pay for them. Give them to me and I'll go to check out; you wait for the gentleman."

"As you wish madam."

"Oh and which one was it, the one you recommended?"

"The cuffs?"

"Yes!" She snapped her fingers. "Those; give me those, too."

He picked up the box and handed it to her. "Oh. His shirt size is the same as the suits, right?"

The man smile, beside himself. "Yes."

"Thanks." She made to leave, but stopped. Her head snapped to the man. "Stall him, as much as you can."

Another fifteen minutes later, the two met outside the store, in their respective bags. Tokio couldn't effectively hide her second purchase, but she was going to give it to him when hey parted anyway—she just didn't want him to spot her and try and stop her.

"I'm sorry it took me so long, the man was very...scholastic about folding m clothes." She tried not to smile too much.

"That's fine."

"But I'm all set; thank you."

"I received your gift, by the way," she finally remembered what ate at her the entire time they were together, "it was very pretty. Thank you."

"Thank Eiji," he said honestly "he was the one who chose it. I only decided on the colour." That seemed to surprise her. "I recalled you are fond of the certain shade of red."

She had to think but for a second before she burst out laughing. "That's right; I was basically a ball of red when you first saw me, right?" she managed when it died down. "The scarf, the coat, the shoes..." He nodded. "I do like it; thank you for remembering."

"So, what are you gonna do now?"

She shrugged. "Have nowhere I need to be. I'll probably walk a bit and then head home...?"

"You're here with your car?"

She shook her head no. "I'll take a cab home."

"I'll give you a ride."

"Oh, you don't have to."

"I'm parked close by and I too feel like stretching my legs a little so let's go leave all the bags there and grab a coffee or something."

That did a little trick on her heart where it almost flipped. He was very nonchalant about it, but somehow she knew he knew this wasn't as casual as he was passing it, but she didn't care. She wanted to spend more time with him, actually. Smiling, she nodded, just as he looked towards where the car was – as she later found out – just to avoid her eyes, trying to play it off cool.

He too didn't feel like not being around her, curiously. Just like two days ago at the station. Stealing a glance at her, he noticed she was pleased with how this turned out and he felt a little more relaxed. They left the garment bags lying on the backseats and then walked to a nearby coffee shop, for a cup to go. He decided on a hot chocolate in the end, as she admitted she had missed a nice hot cappuccino. They talked for a long time, taking longer on their walk than either one had planned when they left their houses that morning.

"Ah, I remembered what I wanted to tell you; my sister's pregnant," he changed the subject completely, giving her whiplash "so, she says she can't accept your offer to tutor Eiji."

She failed to see the connection between the two, blinking by the rapid succession of information. "Why?"

"Her previous pregnancy was very dangerous; that's why it's taken them so long to try again. She'll only work from home from now on and her husband can't be coming and going, she said; and when I offered to drive him back and forth myself, or you know, he can take the damn train, she said I wasn't supposed to parent him and that it's final. Sorry."

"Oh." She grew sad. "Look, I can pick him up or drop him off, too, it's not all that terrible—we won't be meeting more than once a week, maybe a little less. I do work, you know; I'm currently on a leave hence all this free time. Not to mention he'll have school, too, to think about. Tell her it ain't that big of a deal." She waved the entire thing away. "I understand though; if, when she safely delivers, she changes her mind, I'm here. My offer won't go away, okay? Tell Eiji not to be too discouraged."

He gave her a very appreciative look. "I will; thank you for being so understanding."

"I would never want to be in her situation, where I'm worried about my unborn child, my health and some stranger trying to play authority over my other child. No, no; it's fine. I get it. Tell her all I said, but please emphasize I completely get it." He nodded. "I completely get it; make it crystal clear."

"Yes, I got it the first time."

"Ass," she snubbed as she hit his arm, just barely, rolling her eyes.

They had finished their coffee now, their hands had grown cold and they had started the way back to the car for the fifth time. Only this once, what with the subject matter what it was, adding to the fact the sun started setting, they actually got there.

The ride back home was, compared to the walk, quiet. He focused on driving and she simply went over that day's events in her head. It'd been a nice surprise to see him there and they had fun. She enjoyed her time with him. She could even go as far as to say, had this been a first date, she would have definitely called back for a second one. It was endearing how he was so proud, formal yet a complete ass at the same time, without even so much as attempting to hide it. He wanted to appear cold and distant but how cold can a man who is so involved in his nephew's life really seem? But he did get stabbed casually on the street and – from what Okita had told her – escaped any serious damage solely because of skill and that was a bit dangerous. Kind of sexy, too but she was fairly certain if she had ever seen anything like that, she would have shrieked and have PTSD, not think it sexy, but, oh well.

"Mmmm, tis a shame your formal thing's tomorrow!" she complained out loud, finally giving voice to the thought that ate at her since he told her, only after they were almost at her house. "Mine's tomorrow, too, and I don't have a date. I was planning to rope you into it since the moment I saw you there, but now, I can't."

He gave an earnest laugh at that. "You'd have probably succeeded, too." Her frown was exaggerated and quite adorable. "I was thinking of asking you the same thing, but yeah, it doesn't work out."

"Nooo, don't be like that; you have no idea how much the dress I bought would go with that blue suit." She looked out the window, sad but a little angry, too, supporting her head on her hand. "And it's a really nice dress, too."

"I'm sure you'll wear it very nicely." She made a face. "What's the occasion?"

"Oh, I don't remember," she let it slip without a shred of guilt "I only know where it is and how my presence is mandatory—CEO pretty much demanded it. I don't even know who organizes it—only that it isn't ours but I'm supposed to attend."

"When is it?"

"Some generic time; I have to be there by nine, latest."

"You are extremely interested in this event, I see."

She chuckled. "I actually am, because it's connected to one of my personal projects; I do things outside of the corp and this one is actually a pro-bono type of thing and I'm very excited to see if it works...but I hate the funfair and the fake smiles of people who pretend to care about what I'm doing. They only care because it's somehow profitable to them—same everywhere. This is no different. And to think I had to fight so hard to get this project started...government officials are the worst. Just to give you a taste of the ridiculousness I was put through, I requested two more people – ideally three, but I get that there are restrictions – and yet they were not willing to give me even once, not without "results first"." She snorted. "As if they were paying me! But still, I was getting nowhere, I didn't have enough time in a day! So, I approached two programmers I know and hired them out of my own pocket." Another, more impressive snort. "I paid their salary for two months; I don't know what changed after that, but they finally approved of the fund and took them on their pay-roll." She clicked her tongue. "So, yeah, I didn't want to attend; but my CEO made me. So, I took no time to read the invitation. I just made sure someone reminded me in time."

"Ah, that's why you were last-minute shopping."

"Not exactly; I had decided on what to wear...but then I hated it; hated everything. So I went out and bought something else. Oh well." She sighed. "Oh, here we are." She hummed. "Time flies."

He mentally repeated that, knowing that only meant he actually had fun with her. He went through the motions, parking and getting out to help her with her bag. He took a long look at her for a moment. "It was nice seeing you, Tokio;" he couldn't help but saying after all "try and have fun tomorrow, okay? And don't bring Hajime or I fear you'll have him eat them."

She instantly shook with laughter, head thrown back. "Don't tempt me, good sir. And I hope you have fun tomorrow, too!" He nodded. "And I hope you change your mind about the vest, too."

He took but a split second; then he glared. "I knew it; you bought it, didn't you? That other vest, with the tie?"

"Mmmmmmaybe," she admitted, smile sheepish.

"That was too easy." Suspicious. "What else did you buy?"

"You'll see," was all she said, smile wide, like the cat who ate the canary. "Buh bye Hajime; please don't leave them collecting dust in your closet, okay?"

His warning "Tokio...!" stopped her from leaving.

"Come on, at least promise me that much."

He sighed. "Fine; I promise to wear them at least once in my life." An eyebrow raised. "And that's that."

"That's enough." A wink. "Good evening, Hajime. And you know," just as she had started walking away, she turned around, walking to her apartment still, but backwards "you can actually call me, on my phone, for more reasons than your nephew. Just saying." Then, with flourish, she turned her back again, walking away. "Drive safe," was the last thing he heard from her as she went up the stairs.

A grin, nearly a smile, made its crooked way on his face. Ah shit, he felt his leg twitch, ending up tapping his foot, trying to relieve the tension; that was never a good sign, because it meant he felt restless, like a task needed to be completed, but wasn't. It was left unfinished. And somehow, whatever that was, it urged him to go after her. Not a good idea, not after what she'd just said or how she reacted to his own throw-away comments, purposely spoken in a certain way. Damn.

He needed a smoke.

He made the quick call to get in his car and drive away before she turned on too many of her lights and he started mentally following her inside her home, trying to guess her routine for when she returned. He'd drive straight back to his home and have a smoke first thing. Then he'd grab a quick bite because an empty stomach always put him up to no good. Clenching his jaw, he did as he decided, even if he had to force himself to do it.

He drove off and did not allow himself to look in his rear-view mirror even once.

.

"My friend, you're looking good," Okita commented in his usual pleasant tone when he met with Hajime, both already there, coats checked out, to be out of the way.

It was a nice, big venue, decorated to match the New Year theme: ceilings, windows, walls, all had some sort of snowflake, either in pattern, sticker or ornament; fake snow was sprinkled in strategically selected places – on the buffet, in places people wouldn't walk as much, on small shelves and even some ornaments – while the colour scheme screamed winter and celebration, opting for lighting that favoured cold blues and whites, even some greens. It was very beautiful. There was a bar that received the same treatment, while the guy manning the station sported a red "Santa Claus" hat, while some of the employees milling about, wore Reindeer antlers or Snowflake antennas. It was...a little too on the nose, but he figured it was cute, for some. And it was the 30th of December, so they only had one more day to be festive, so it was acceptable.

"Thanks, you look sharp, too." Suspicion arose. "Did you and Rin have a fight or something? Where is she?"

Okita laughed. "No, no, she just can't make it; but she still chose what I should wear."

"Fair enough." He took a very quick look around, seeing only familiar faces and even some friendly ones. "I don't see the person of the hour though," he commented, a little scathing, "where is he?"

"He's supposed to show his face around nine, I think; I don't know, to be honest. Hijikata said he'd definitely be here by then."

"Has he met the guy?"

"No, only Kondou-san has. Said the guy's some sorta tech wizard and he's a cool dude—was pretty excited. But he only met him like, two weeks ago, although he'd been with the project only a couple of months after it was announced."

"Huh." What was Kondou doing for six months? "Well, if he's so excited, he may be worth all this trouble. To think I went and got myself a new suit for the occasion. Well, I did need one, but still."

Okita seemed to find it too entertaining though and broke out laughing. "I knew it was a new suit; there was no way you had worn this before and I wouldn't remember. Did you pick it out man?"

He shook his head, a smirk coming to his lips. "No; and if I tell you what happened, you'll start laughing again."

"Ooooh, interesting. Spill, spill, spill," he chanted.

Just then, a relatively tall man passed by them, curly short hair swooshing as he stopped in front of them, fixing his glasses. "Spill, spill, spill," he started chanting along and soon enough, four more people had gathered around him, chanting the word.

"Idiots," he grumbled but did oblige and told them what happened.

Not with many details—in fact, bare facts. Okita knew there were much more he was leaving out, if he'd prefaced it like that, but most possibly refrained because of everyone else. Still, Tokio huh? She seemed to crop up everywhere around him. He couldn't help the smile, and the rest, the teasing. It wasn't too long after the clock showed twenty to nine, that lights almost went out...and whispers started getting passed around, the man of the hour had just arrived. Ooh the excitement.

Saitou and Okita had simply rolled their eyes when some of their adjacent men started priming themselves and ironing out invisible wrinkles in their clothes trying to look bigger or taller. So much effort for what? Those idiots...

"Let's go grab a bite," Okita suggested instead "I'm starving."

"Do you really wanna listen to Hijikata's complains? Wait until after they introduce him to us."

"You think they will?"

"Aren't we his poster boys?"

"True; he'll want us to socialize." Hajime nodded, sadly but sagely. "Fine. But let's get a drink, at least."

Now, to that, he was not going to say no. And just as they turned about and started walking to the bar, the man of the hour must have walked in, because they were surrounded by "ooohs" and "aaahs" and the visible commotion. They couldn't resist their curiosity and they both stopped and turned to see this golden boy Kondou-san kept praising...only to stare, flabbergasted, at a fine-looking woman, clad in an impressive dress, oozing confidence. And, cherry on top of the cake?

It. Was. Tokio.

Hajime almost gawked.

This was out of this world. This was nigh impossible. How? How could this keep happening? And was Tokio the tech wizard? Wait; was this the project she'd said she'd taken on? Amazing. It's a small world after all—too small.

But, oh boy, dis she look amazing. And she seemed taller. Heels, no doubt. It was a long dress after all.

"Is—is that Tokio?" He nodded, an involuntary smirk already forming; Okita snorted. "She looks good; damn that ass." Yeah, no kidding. "Aaaaand she's immediately swarmed by people." He shook his head. "Let's just wait until Hijikata introduces us."

At least that explained why the guys where all so anxious to look nice, before. So that meant, they knew it was a woman and not them. Okita blinked. "Does that mean Kondou-san legitimately thought she was a man until they, met two weeks ago? And we're both on leave, so we wouldn't know."

"Quite possibly."

Hajime wasn't looking at his friend though; he was too busy staring at the woman, or trying to stare her down enough to make her notice him. She was smiling, in a very polite way, to everyone who had surrounded her, Hijikata and Kondou included, and would look at them as they introduced themselves and made their presence known. She had half her hair up on some elaborate do and the rest were hanging straight over her shoulders and half her back. It took a very long moment for her to look away from her interlocutors, but when she did and started sweeping the room, her eyes focused on his almost instantly.

Well, he was a tall man after all.

His presence gave her pause and she briefly stared at the man speechless, mouth slightly agape. Slowly, but steadily, her mouth morphed into a very big, very honest smile and she then had to look away, because it wasn't polite not to look at the person talking to you. But even then, her smile never went away. And that did not escape him; he kept his eyes trained on her and watched her closely, until five minutes later when she was finally free to walk away with Hijikata's blessings on the way out, as she went straight for the two men, smile growing as she neared.

"Good evening Hajime,"she saluted, smile bigger than ever "fancy meeting you here."

"Tokio." He gave a nod. "Is this the new dress?"

The question seemed to excite her; she bobbed her head multiple times and actually did a spin, holding on to her skirt that was dragging behind her, but only a little. "Yes, it is!"

"It looks very nice; you look very nice."

"Aw, thank you; you look very nice, too." Her smile turned into a smirk. "I see you decided to wear what I suggested."

Her eyes traveled to his burgundy vest and tie, with a blue shirt in a shade softer that the jacket.

"Suggested is very misleading; you basically shoved them in my hands and made me promise to use them." She chuckled. "But I thought, what the hell, might as well; and I liked it. But I didn't know you'd be here."

"Oh? Otherwise, you wouldn't have?"

"Nah," he waved her away "you were the one so insistent about it. I'd definitely have preferred it."
"Huh; that's a nice quality in a man." To his inquisitive stare, she elaborated, mischievous. "Admitting they can be wrong."

He shook his head amused. "But the dress is black; weren't you the one who said black is boring?"

She gave him a look. "Are you calling my dress boring?"

"No, not at all; you did."

She gestured "no no" with her finger. "I said, if you already have three black suits, go with another colour, don't be boring." She tutted and tossed her hair back. "Black is eternal; and this particular dress isn't boring at all. Plus, a dress like this, I can pair with so many shoes—black goes with everything."

"Everything?"

"Everything; except for more black. Then it really is boring."

"Ah, is that why you didn't want me buying that suit? Because you knew your dress was black, too?"

She pursed her lips, a guilty smile making an appearance. "Mmmmmmaybe." Just then, she looked around her, trying to find literally anything or anyone else to look at, because she couldn't stand that arrogant look on his face, the satisfaction. Her cheeks must have been tinted bright red. "Oh, Okita is at the bar; I'll go grab a drink, too—do you want anything?"

"I'd like a scotch," he deliberated without missing a beat.

She winked. "Coming right up."

She span around and strutted all the way to the open bar...but not without being ambushed by random people before she ever got there. Heh, of course she'd be busy, she was the person of honour; he had to make peace with the fact his drink would take much longer to reach him than intended. He didn't mind the delay, to be honest, but watching all those men around her, didn't sit all that right with him. Maybe it had to do with the fact he wasn't used to not getting her full attention—after all, it'd been just the two of them for most of their interactions, small children and dogs notwithstanding.

Taking a literal seat back, finding something to lean against, he crossed his hands and observed the room. Some people waved at him, he waved back; some bypassed him in a hurry. And one, quite gracelessly, ran into him.

"Ow!"

It was a woman; and that "ow" sounded familiar. He looked back, to see who ran into him, only to find the least expected face: Yaso. Visibly surprised, he stood to his full height, helping her get her bearings, as she almost fell over. Thankfully, she had managed not to hit his wound, so he didn't actually hurt...too much. When she finally looked up at him, she froze, mid-apology.

"Hajime..."

He nodded. "Yaso. Hi, very long time no see; how are you?"

"I'm, um, well; I'm doing great. How are you?"

There was this very unnatural role switch between them, where Yaso was the one nervous and uncertain, while Saitou was laid-back and cool, for their third post break up run-in. So far, it'd been Hajime who was trying to untangle himself from the situation. But not this once, surprisingly.

"I'm good; lately it's been a little more lively than I'm used to but it's good getting out of your comfort zone, right?"

"Right...!" She blinked, not expecting an actual answer. "It's very good—it's great."

"So, how come you're here?" The whole question should have been, or, the missing part was, since you're no longer attached to a police officer or detective or special forces agent. And, quite obviously, she understood all of that.

"Oh, I, uh, I'm here for...with...the event planner."

"I see; you work for an event planner. That's nice; is this your first job?"

"Yeah, sort of...I mean, it's a family business." Just then, she noticed Okita zeroing in on them; she became even more nervous. "As in, the man who has the business is my husband; we're married. I'm here to help him, because this is an important event for him."

Honestly surprised, as he had no idea about any of that, his eyes grew a little, just as Okita came rushing in, face red and hand wet, as he spilled some of his wine as he power-walked all the way to them.

"I had no idea you had gotten married; congratulations. I hope you have a happy life together."

"Th-thank you, Hajime; that means a lot."

"Yaso! Congratulations on your marriage, oh my god," Okita commented then, all smiles, but both knew him long enough to know it wasn't genuine "when did that happen?"

"A month ago, give or take a couple of weeks."

"Oh wow; amazing; only a month ago. And how long have you known him?"

Yaso was mortified; Hajime turned to look at him, scolding. "W-we met a year and a half ago, at most; it was all very sudden, but we decided to just go for it."

"You don't have to make excuses," Hajime assured her, shaking his head at his friend "it's okay. And I really wish you the best."

"Look, I'm really sorry if I'm ruining your night, but I honestly thought you weren't coming. That's the only reason I'm here! I heard from Takeda you got shot so I figured you'd be home, recuperating. But, if you're here, hey! At least it isn't serious, right?"

"...right. Look, it's alright; you can go wherever you want, especially if you're helping your husband," he made perfectly clear, feeling more generous than ever "you don't answer to anyone."

"Only common decency," Okita commented, but in a very low voice.

Still, she heard him and turned deep red. "S, so, you're alright, yes? Healthy?"

"Oh, yeah, I'm fine; like you said, it was not that serious."

"What was not that serious?"

Tokio's voice, incredulous and spiked with contention, came from behind the two men, drawing everyone's attention. Yaso smiled politely and let her know she was referring to "his stab wound. Can't be that serious if he's here, right?"

"Oh no, not serious at all; just his stitches wouldn't take at first and he'd bleed all over the floor and then the doctor had to add like, thirteen more. And then, as if that wasn't enough, the doctor's making him keep them a week longer than he'd anticipated because the wound was deeper than expected."

That was news even to Okita, who looked from Hajime to Tokio in shock.

Yaso was, once more, mortified. "Really!?"

"Oh yeah; he pretends to be he fine, but if he moves too suddenly, it hurts."

"It really isn't as terrible as you—"

She looked up at him, defiant; he took a long, hard moment staring her down. She pursed her lips. "Just so you know," she started slowly, taking her time with each word "the flower shop delivers outside the hospital—"

"It hurts," he stated in a hurry then, looking at Yaso and Okita "it isn't serious, but it isn't nothing." The look on Tokio's face spoke of satisfaction; only then did she hand him his drink. "Thank you."

"Mmm, you're welcome. I'm Tokio, by the way."

"Oh right; I know who you are," she waved her away, "I'm Yaso."

Yaso? The name sounded familiar.

"But if you're so hurt, why did you come?" Yaso tried to sound teasing, but ended up sounding nosy.

"I'm guessing because Hijikata-san dictated so, if I had to judge by his insistence to introduce me to all of his men" Tokio answered for him, after an impressive snort "and Hajime really can't sit still for longer than three hours at any given moment."

"...you are a surprisingly good judge of character," was all the tall man said, mildly impressed.

She shrugged, arrogant.

"Wait," Yaso blinked, finally connecting the dots "are you guys..." she gestured to Hajime and Tokio repeatedly "together?"

Just as Hajime was about to speak, Okita exclaimed "yes!" first, cutting him off. "I mean, they came here together, like a date."

Oh.

Oh no.

She remembered where she had heard the name now.

The way Hajime looked at Okita, made Yaso believe no, they weren't; but the way Tokio politely laughed, and grabbed Hajime's hand made her rethink her assessment. "It's a very long and complicated story but the short version is, sure, yeah; why do you ask?" At least she was quick on her feet and acted natural. She only hoped Hajime didn't mind.

"I was just surprised, that's all. Because my husband informed me you did not have a plus one..."

"If he's already an invited guest, what's the point of mentioning him as an extra person," Okita reasoned and lied expertly, waving her away.

"Your husband?"

Oooof, Tokio thought. That must have hurt.

"The event planner, Oto, is my husband."

"Ah, I see; well, yeah, Okita's right. What's the point? His portion is already accounted for."

"Right."

"Know what? I have to work the room a little more because I can see Hijikata staring at me hopeful, but I'll be back." She gave Hajime a squeeze and then a pat on the back than no one else noticed. "Until then, don't do anything I wouldn't, okay?"

Just as Tokio was out of earshot, Yaso finally relaxed. A smile returned, sad, but knowing. "You look good Hajime, despite the injury." A chuckle. "Should have known a woman picked out these clothes when you spoke of comfort zones—you'd have never chosen burgundy of all colours. But it suits you. So does she. Have you been together for a long time?"

Okita felt like an asshole then. "Look, when I said they were together—"

Hajime shook his head to his friend. "I don't know her more than a couple of weeks; she's just...astute." He gave a fond glance her way. "It just so happened we saw each other a lot in a short period of time."

"Weeks? Wow. I was sure you'd say months, at least. Heh, there you have it then: you'll make a good couple. She seems like she has a handle on your situation, too" she showed the entirety of his being "and even I can tell she's extremely smart so you'll get along just fine." Another sad chuckle escaped her. "She seems like quite the catch; make sure not to mess it up this once, okay?"

He wasn't bitter, really. But the last bit did piss him off a little. "It's a two-way street, I believe."

"I didn't mean anything by it," she put her hands up defensively "I was only wishing you the best."

He just shook his head. "Go back to your husband, Yaso, leave me alone."

"I will; goodbye. Have a nice rest of the night. Bye Okita."

"Bye, Yaso, come back never."

She heard him, just as she was turning around, but didn't stop to comment; Hajime kept shaking his head. "Give her a break, man."

"Then we'd both be giving her a break and that ain't right; she'll think all is forgiven."

"Okita, I stopped caring about this almost a year and a half ago; so should you. Let it go; it's liberating."

"I just don't like how she came here with her husband to flaunt." He clicked his tongue. "Even if you weren't around, we'd be. And we know her. Seems like a mean thing to do."

"Let it go," he repeated, taking a sip from his drink "I don't care; if that's what she needs, let her have it. She was in a very bad place when she left; she looks good now."

"For such an asshole, you definitely say the most selfless things."

"For such a nice guy, you sure hold a grudge."

They shared a knowing smile. It really was a blessing to have good friends. And he actually, honestly, did not mind; he couldn't care less, what Yaso was doing. And the realisation lifted a huge weight off of his shoulders. He did it; he was no longer pretending to be over it. He actually was.

"And I'm really sorry I said you guys were together, I just reacted. She looked so disbelieving, it pissed me off."

Hajime actually smiled and waved him away. "Half-truths, half-lies. It's fine."

"Do you think Tokio will mind? Should, should I talk to her, too?"

"She didn't out you when you told Yaso, I don't think she'll make a deal out of it."

"True; she was a trooper." He sighed. "I like her; ask her out, man. You do get along well."

"That we do."

"And I don't think you'll ever look sharper than you do today, so go stand next to her," he elbowed his friend, encouragingly. "Now that she looks amazing, before someone else notices and tries to take your place."

"She'll come back," was all he responded to that "I don't need to crowd her, too."

Only, she couldn't. Literally. The crowd gathered around her only grew and grew with every passing minute. It had gotten to the point where people couldn't actually see her, only guess her general location by the sheer number of bodies around her.

Okay, maybe she needed help; he had an idea then. He took out his phone and walked her way with purpose. Thankful to his height for being spotted by the woman immediately and getting her attention, the sea of people easily parted to allow him entrance.

"So, my cell phone is acting up and I haven't gotten around to fixing it yet. Can you diagnose the problem?"

Her eyes lit up; jumping at the opportunity to lose the crowd, too she took a step forward. "What's the issue with it? Is it an error message or something doesn't launch or close properly? Ugh, I can't work like this. I'm sorry, I'm going to step over there," she addressed everyone around her "I need the quiet, I can't work like this. Sorry; I'll see you guys later."

He'd produced his phone, dangling it in front of her and she grabbed it as if it was a life line. Without being told, she immediately started inputting commands, a small laugh escaping her. "Your cell phone is Sony, too, amazing."

"It has this thing where I need to press something twice when I'm on the screen menu, otherwise it won't work."

Her laughter was louder. "How long have you had this phone?"

"A year; but it was like this ever since I got it—it was a birthday present. But it's otherwise fully functional, so I didn't really care. But I figured, you needed the distraction."

"Your brand loyalty is astounding; you got a glitchy smart phone but still gave our TV sets a try—and it turned out problematic, too. It's a one in a million, maybe more, kind of odd but wow, it happened to you. I'd have just washed my hands off of the brand, to be honest, I have no patience."

"I do." He shrugged. "Besides, that's the only issue it has."

"Hm...the way you make it sound it seems like there was an error with the commands—give me a second, I'll fix it. If it is what I think it is, anyhow."

She immediately went to work and, he had to admit, he enjoyed watching her do it. She was very focused and no-nonsense. Hell, she even took off an earring, used its pointy part to extract his SD card and put it on again. It was fun; also, her shoulders, semi-exposed due to the sheer fabric extending all the way to her lower back and the top half of her cleavage, were very distracting.

"Uh huh! I knew it; I was right. Half the work is done; all that's left is the new commands—just give it another minute or two."

He watched how the cold light hit the stones embedded on the sheer fabric and reflected it; he watched as her tongue stuck out a little from the concentration, struggling to make it work as fast as she could; he watched as her frown progressively turned into a smile, the closer she came to the completion of her task. And then, when she finally exclaimed "here! Fixed," triumphantly, he didn't miss the way her eyes creased in pride.

Amused, the first thing he did was to press an app once; bam! It worked. "Why thank you; you're really good at your job."

"Oh you," she waved him away, affectedly. Then, he finally handed her her drink back and she could finally take a much needed big sip. "Why are all those people flocking around me?"

"You're the shining new toy, literally. And you're a woman; an attractive one, at that. They won't leave you alone tonight. Maybe if you show up three of four more times, they'll eventually calm down."

Underhanded compliment, huh? But could he pay a real one? "I see." She took another sip, this one small. "I guess it will die down once they see me without the make-up and the big dress."

He snorted. "Hardly," he made perfectly clear "I've seen you without make-up and the big dress; they won't matter much."

"Oh. Does that mean you think I'm attractive anyway?"

He smirked at her, knowing exactly what she'd been trying to do from the get go. "I think you're beautiful; but I also think, you know you're beautiful. And you're just fishing for compliments."

"Mmmmmaybe."

"You can just say yes, you know; it's what you mean."

"Maybe doesn't mean yes."

"Granted; but when you say it like that, it does."

She had to smile. "What's so bad about fishing for compliments anyway?"

"Nothing; but admit that's what it is."

"Maybe I'm fishing because you won't give me one."

"Well, that was a big remissness on my part;" he stared directly in her eyes, very earnestly "you look stunning."

"Thank you, good sir." She tossed her hair again, something he noticed she'd do only when he was around. "But wait till you see me in my other dress. It's red; and it's velvet."

Why did the colour not surprise him? No, something else did. "Are you...trying to tempt me to ask you out?"

"Mmmmmaybe." He gave her a look; she chuckled. "Yes."

"Well, it's working."

Of course, even if she hadn't, he'd still have asked her out, but it was nice to have the confirmation. The smile that graced her lips also puffed up his ego, which was good.

"But for now," he glanced at the buffet "let's go grab a bite because I'm starving."

"Ugh, me too," Okita came out of nowhere, although it became quite obvious he must have heard everything if the shit-eating grin on his face was any indication. "Let's go eat, before they eat it all."

"Ha ha, no, Okita-san, this isn't how it works; they bring new platters of the food once one empties, and usually, big buffets like that have all the types of food they carry in the open. If they ran out...wow, someone was very hungry."

"This is the first time we ever have such a nice and varied buffet to be honest, as well as such a big venue," Okita explained, wiggling his eyebrows "and I am pretty sure it has to do with you being here." The wiggling intensified and she laughed. "I think the higher ups wanted to impress you."

"Food doesn't impress me; being true to your word does and so far I am quite underwhelmed," she almost snapped, looking at the huddle of important people who all smiled or gave a small bow at her when she glanced. "Bastards don't ever give me what they promise and up until Kondou-san came along, I had to make do with either no people, or paying them myself."

"Aw, man."

"And guess what I did: just paid them myself."

"But aren't you doing this pro-bono?" Okita questioned, visibly confused; when she nodded he became even more confused.

She smiled. "I wasn't being paid, I waved my fee; but if other people were going to come aboard, they had a right to be compensated for their time. And I needed the two people to help; I work, too, you know. And this project is quite time-consuming. But that didn't stop them from saying they did not have the funds and that's why they accepted my help, because I offered my services for free." She shook her head. "So I paid them myself."

"Idiots."

"But Kondou-san shut that down immediately and managed to get the funds for the two people I basically hired."

"He's awesome," Okita corroborated "he's our guardian angel. Hijikata is the brains but he, huh! He is the charm. All the charisma in all of the units, he's taken it. He can get almost anything out of anyone, he's that capably crafty."

"I respect him; he was the first person to ever ask me something about my work in a non-condescending way." She shrugged. "Being a woman in this field is so fun."

Her sarcasm was almost tangible; both men laughed, but quite sympathetically. "How do you pt up with it?"

"I don't," she made absolutely clear "which is why I respect Kondou-san so deeply. He is the only one who didn't have to be taught to be respectful to me." She chuckled. "Hijikata is a thing to behold, too; I can see why they are always paired together—they told me they have worked their way through their ranks together," she explained "they compliment each other very well. He's very savvy."

Just like that, the conversation became about their jobs, their duties and a rough outline of what each person does, seeing she had no clue what their job description was, other than potentially dangerous. Once she did, she reclassified their jobs as extremely dangerous and decided she never wanted to be part for any of it...although, if she was planning on going out with the man again, she would definitely have some sort of brush with it. She only hoped he didn't get assaulted again, and definitely with her present. Huh, it seemed like she was in a tough spot.

The night had started getting lively, with most bellies filled and throats wet; in fact, it was about then that Hajime came back with three tall glasses and a champagne in hand.

"Oooooh, champagne! I've never had champagne before," Okita exclaimed excited, at the sight.

"Treat yourself," Tokio spoke sagely, call-back to their Tokyo night "am I right?"

"Indeed," he confirmed, the secret smile acknowledgment to her reference.

"Where did you find this man?" Okita seemed even more excited, knowing this mustn't have been part of the open bar, because it was a whole bottle and he did bring it unopened.

"I have my ways," was all he cryptically said, and started shaking it. When he deemed it bubbly enough, he took out the knife the person at the bar gave him and opened the bottle.

"Ooohs" and "aaahs" came from his audience, but also the people who happened to hear the popping of the champagne and they all watched as the froth came out in a small fountain. He immediately poured champagne in the three glasses, not to waste half of it in the overflowing froth. They clanged their glasses, spoke "cheers" and drank.

"It's...sweet."

"It is," Hajime repeated, surprised. So it wasn't just the one he remembered, they were all like that?

"Most champagnes are," she informed them and smacked her lips satisfied. "This is nice." She turned to look at Hajime. "Please tell me it was mid-range."

"I have no idea what you're talking about." She gave him a look; he cracked a smile. "It was, relax."

"What does she mean?"

"She means—hello," Hajime stopped talking, as a person no one knew came in their three-people company. "Can we help you?"

"Tokio-san, your sister has called the venue, needs to talk to you."

"Sister? Why didn't she call me on my cellphone?" She shook her head. "Not important, I'm coming," she assured the employee "forgive me gentlemen, I have to take this call."

She walked behind the man, hurried steps to match his strides. Ten minutes later, she returned, almost breathless. "I am so sorry to cut this night short, but I have to go; now." There was urgency in her voice and something akin to anger in her voice.

"What happened, Tokio-san?"

"My sister is baby-sitting for my brother who's gone to Italy for vacation; we're having an emergency. It may be nothing, but it can also be serious, I have to go. And the idiot that I am I lost my phone! That's why she had to call the venue, UGH! I'm going. Thank you for the entertainment, and thank you for the champagne!"

She bowed to Okita and then gave Hajime a bright smile. "I'll hold you to your word, just so you know," she gave him a final ultimatum and before she stormed off to say goodbye to the higher-ups she climbed on her tip toes and pecked his cheek. "Goodnight!"

She disappeared behind the throngs of people who tried to catch her before she leaves, but she made surprisingly good time to the wardrobe to retrieve her coat and then leave altogether.

Okita, who had been elbowing him overly-excited ever since Tokio kissed his cheek, laughed gingerly when Tokio was completely out of sight. "Oh man, you should have offered to drive her to her sister's."

"No, it's fine; she might not have driven here, but no one wants a stranger with them when something like this happens. If it isn't serious, then she made all that fuss for no reason, and her sister will feel bad. If it is serious, then I definitely have no place there."

"But she lost her phone, man! How will you communicate?"

"She's an tech wizard, remember? She can always retrieve her email have back-ups; besides, she has my number, too, through her actual work." Okita wasn't satisfied with the answer. "It'll work out, chill. Why are you so invested in this?"

"Because you finally show an interest in a woman who's like her!"

"Like her?"

"Yeah, you know, one who's supposed to stay for some time." They exchanged a loaded look. "I don't mean to sound preachy, the farthest thing from it, but it's nice to see you interested in a relationship again. I mean, who am I to judge, I know; I only settled down, like, a year ago, but it's nice to see you putting in the effort."

"Yeah, yeah, I get it, shut up."

"I don't believe I'm saying this, but Yaso was right: you guys make a good couple." He elbowed him one final time. "Make sure not to let things go without chasing her down, okay? She lost her phone, the ball's in your court."

"Okita, yes, I get it." A shake of his head. "I don't want to, anyway. I like her. She's...honest." Okita hummed in return. "Thanks though."

"You're welcome."

.

It was dark, almost eight pm.

Tokio had walked her dog in the morning, took care of her grocery shopping, cooked, ate in the company of her wonderful pooch, who was gobbling down his own food and then, around half past six, took him out to do his business before she left to head for the pastry shop. In this moment of time, her old cell phone was still missing; she had called the venue that morning and they let her know they sadly did not find it. She filed a report with her work, as the phone was given to her by them, and then another form to request a new phone. Until then, she had no phone and she didn't feel like buying a new phone, as her sister gave her an old one that was serviceable.

But she kept the phone as-is, because she knew Sony would give her a new one soon and it just wasn't worth the hustle to reformat the whole thing for just two or three days. Sighing, she was debating whether to stand from the bench she was lounging at or not, because it was almost her turn, but it could have been another ten-minutes easily until she was served. Just as she was about to stand, she noticed someone coming and sitting right next to her, without warning. Just as she was about to say something to them, her frown turned into a bright smile.

"Hello Hajime."

"Tokio."

She was almost laughing at the improbability of it all; oh dear, of course it was him. He, too, was smiling like he could barely believe it yet at the same time, why was he even surprised?

"Why are you sitting on a bench?"

"I was sandwiched between two men and they started fighting, physically. I tried getting out of the way, but they still hit me. They stopped fighting then and started apologising but I told them it's fine, just let me go sit there and keep my spot; they agreed."

"Makes sense. You aren't hurt, are you?"

"Nah, I'm fine."

"What happened with the emergency last night?"

"Oh, thankfully, it was nothing serious, just food poisoning. It's just that she thought it was appendicitis, because our niece showed it hurt a little lower than it did and sister lost it. Her husband was vomiting all the while, so he couldn't drive or offer help, so she called me, because our other sister also didn't answer her calls." She smirked. "We found out she had taken her wife to Mt Fuji for the turn of the year, and they were in a cabin in the woods, hence no reception." She laughed. "All my siblings are ridiculous."

He looked confused. "Your sister married a woman in Japan?"

"No, no, they got married in Canada, but got some sort of certificate here, in Tokyo."

"Oh that makes sense." He shook his head. "Your sister's a helpless romantic."

"That she is." She turned to look at him, head on her hand, a little relieved to find his reaction being what it was.

"What happened to the cell phone?"

"I still don't know!" She was a little upset, but seemed to have rolled with it. "I made all the appropriate moves on my part and the rest is up to lady luck." She shrugged. "But sister gave me an old cell phone she had at hand, so at least my family can contact me—it still has her number and emails and all that."

Not that he needed an explanation, but it was nice she felt like sharing. "So where is the dog?"

"Oh, he's at home. It's 31st of December with fireworks going off anywhere; he's terrified of them. So these past three years I walk him early and once I'm done with all of my shopping, we snuggle up on the couch and watch the fireworks on TV together. I have it muted," she explained. "We both love the colours."

"That's cute; but it seems like dog Hajime and I have more things in common than just a name: we were both named after the day we were born—or adopted."

She laughed. "It's your birthday tomorrow!" He nodded. "Aw, that's nice. Ah," a realisation "is that why you always go to your parents' with the entire family?" He nodded again. "That's nice...so, what are your plans for tonight? Drinks with Okita? Some other friend or family?"

"The plan is purchasing a chocolate mousse and eating it; I'll socialize enough in the next three days and I've already socialized enough these past few days." She smiled at that. "So, no outings." Then, he appeared to be thinking. "Since it is my birthday tomorrow...why don't you buy me the mousse?"

"Oh?"

"I mean, I just arrived; from what I gather, you've been here a while." She was, nodding as reassurance. "And, if you do, I'll concede and eat the mousse here with you."

As she laughed, gears turned in her head; looking back to the line, she saw the man she was in front of had just entered the shop—that meant her turn would be very shortly. "Just give me a moment and I'll make you a better offer."

The gleam in her eyes told him she was up to no good, but he liked that. In fact, he was counting on it. He returned it with a smirk and watched her go in the pastry shop; when she reemerged, he saw she had two bags and both were suspiciously full.

"I am guessing you didn't come only for a treat?"

"Give or take," she didn't specify but did hold one of the two bags up. "In this one, is your mousse;" he needn't hear more, to relieve her of her burden "and I also have that caramel thing you had suggested once upon a time and some other things. Now, here's the deal, and don't read too much into this," she held up a finger "but I thought, why don't you come over to my place? I mean, I am going to watch the fireworks on mute with my dog, under a blanket on my couch and after a while, I'll go to bed. You'll go home, eat your mousse on your couch, maybe have a drink and go to bed." She shrugged. "So, why don't you come over, watch the fireworks with me and my dog, eat our sweets, have a drink and then go home?"

"Huh."

"I took a taxi here; did you drive?" He nodded. "Then there's no problem with trains and such, even that is convenient."

"Well, I mean, you did just buy me that mousse..."

"I did."

"And spending my night under a blanket, eating, sounds pretty sweet."

She laughed. "Don't forget the adorable dog."

"Right, the adorable dog..." He smirked. "I don't see a downside to that."

"That's perfect then. Let's go; where did you park?"

Twenty five minutes later, they were both draped in a blanket, comfortably snuggling on the couch, with a dog on their laps – after all, he was so big, that his snout was on her lap and his front legs on Hajime – as they drank sake, accompanied by a platter of assorted goodies. He had helped her throw it together and she was grateful he seemed to be so chill about everything. Dog in his personal space? Just pet him behind the ears. House a little messy? You were not expecting company, he easily brushed her off. There was no cooked food? Let's just grab a couple of meaty or savory snacks and call it a day. The only thing he'd been particular about had been the drink, but that was because he just knew she would have a very decent collection.

So, she poured the drinks, brought the snacks and sat down and wrapped themselves in. She'd left the bottle by his side so he could refill his glass at his own discretion. They talked and joked and shared anecdotes from work and time breezed past, because she was enjoying herself too much. What she enjoyed most, though, was the silent parts. Even when nothing was said, and they just stayed there, warm, taking the occasional sip, it wasn't awkward; nor buzzing. It was just...comfortable. And she hadn't felt comfortable in someone else's silence for a very long time. Shivering at the sudden burst of cold, or maybe it was the realisation, she covered herself even more.

"It's time," Hajime said out of the blue, after a long spell of silence.

She looked up, a little alarmed. "For what?"

"For the dessert."

"Ah, of course."

"Just leave it in the box," was all he said for the next ten minutes, as he heard her opening cupboards and cutlery hitting on crockery. She obliged, and only brought spoons.

"When are you expected at your parents'?" she asked after a very satisfying spoonful.

"Not before ten."

"That's a relief; I'd hate to make you late."

"Who doesn't stay up for the countdown?"

"True..."

"Unless you were referring to something different."

"Mmmmmaybe."

This once, he did not complain about her being purposefully vague. And this once, she did not elaborate. They just kept eating, with a small smile etched on their faces, as the time for the day to turn came near. In fact, it was almost midnight. She had found the channel that shared the live feed from Mt Fuji and she could see the countdown had started, at the upper right corner of the monitor where a clock read: 00:00:20 then 00:00:19 and so on so forth, until they were at

"Five, four, three, two one—happy New Year!"

It was only her that spoke the numbers out loud, but she could see he was mentally doing it, too; both were too tired and too comfortable to move from the couch; and they were very, very close. So when she turned to him to wish him all the best, she found her face only inches from his. And his own, "happy New Year, Tokio," was spoken softly, making her skin crawl.

His breath drew a blush and she had to look away from the intensity of his gaze. "Happy birthday, Hajime. May you be healthy and lucky and get all that you wish for."

"I already have some," his hand found the side of her face, making her feel even warmer "and that should be enough."

And just like that, he eliminated what little distance there was between them, as his lips found hers effortlessly. He was careful at first, trying to respect her boundaries, but when she deepened the kiss by herself, he decided to be more daring, yet relaxed at the same time.

After what felt like both a second and a year, they parted; after a beat, they attempted to repeat the whole thing, but a fluffy snout prevented them, dog Hajime anxiously whining and pawing at whoever human he could reach.

"It's okay, buddy, we aren't fighting," he assured him, stroking his fur. "She's fine, see?"

"Forgive him, he's a little over-protective," she too stroke the dog's fur, the part at the side of his face that was the fluffiest "but he's a very good boy so he will not do this again. Yes, Ji-chan?" The dog whined a little more. "Ji-chan...!" He looked down and to the side, properly chastised. "There it is. He won't do it again."

"I just don't want him to think you're in danger."

"No, no. he knows. If he smelt fear coming off of me, he wouldn't be nudging at your chest, trust me. He's fine."

He smirked. "So then, can I kiss you again?"

"I sure hope so..."

She did make him late the next day, after all, as he hadn't thought to reset his alarm clock and it went off at half past eight. That gave him too little time to get properly ready, since he needed to drive back to his place, then shower and get dressed and leave, but he didn't mind. He took his time waking up, making sure to wake her, too and spend time with her before breakfast. There was something very comforting in the way she'd look at him, so familiar; and the way she kept moving her shoulders really captured his attention. He hadn't felt it in a long time, but he really didn't want to leave this place, this moment in time. He wanted it to go on for another hour, at least.

But he couldn't.

He had to go. He picked himself up from the bed and started dressing.

"Just make sure not to make any sudden movements, while driving." He gave her a look. "Hey, I was very careful with my limbs last night! I didn't hurt you, did I?"

He had to admit that "no," she hadn't.

"Because I was mindful; you be, too. And make sure to take your pills. You know I know you're hurt so you don't mind me watching you wince, but your family doesn't know, right? So make sure to mask the pain."

"Weren't you the one who said I should tell them?"

"Yes, but I can't make you; so if you're going to lie anyway, better do it right."

In the back of his mind, he filed this important piece of information for later. She might not have agreed with him, but she still gave him solid advice, this could be very useful and was definitely in the category of good traits, in his opinion.

"I'll keep it in mind." He fixed his collar and buttoned up the last of his shirt, as he bent low and she rose up a little to meet him and crushed their lips on one another's. "By the way, I left you my number and email at the fridge, call if you need anything."

"Yes, sir." She slow-blinked, as she simply took the moment in, smiling fondly at him. "You're leaving I presume, now?" He nodded. "Have fun at your parents'."

"Thanks; I'd have liked to invite you, but I don't want to torture you, not yet."

She laughed. "Mmmmmaybe next year." She smiled; somehow, it didn't sound or feel like an empty promise.

"Next year," he repeated, gave her a final kiss, this one on the top of her head, grabbed his phone and went on his way. She smiled at herself; then, dog Hajime was seen at the door and she beckoned him closer. He jumped on the bed, she pet him, and then stood up to take a shower.

It was a strange feeling: new year, new you, right? Yet it wasn't so much her that was new, rather, the experience. Or, the person by her side. Somehow, she felt comfortable with this man, even if she knew him only for a short period of time. She even, dared she say it, felt more comfortable with him than her ex boyfriend of five years. It was a...queer feeling, but definitely not unpleasant. It was nice. And this year, maybe she'd finally see more than her work life bloom, maybe; who knew? She brushed her teeth, got dressed and walked her dog; she kept in mind to enter Hajime's contact info in her new phone and took her time at the dog park. She was surprised to see he called her later in the same day; when she asked what was up, he said it: "My brother is very smart; so is my sister. And Eiji might have let slip about the dog and you." She laughed heartily. "They might want to meet you soon."

"How soon?"

"My brother is leaving in two days and says it's a shame he got to meet the dog and not his owner."

"...fine. But not today; tomorrow? A nice morning coffee with your family."

"Yeah, why not?"

She giggled. "I guess not a year after all?"

"I was hoping you wouldn't bring that up."

"Maybe next year, too, then."

"It's a date."


A/N: No explicit happily ever after in this one, but it is implied. Please tell me if you liked this and I really hope you enjoyed the read, dearies.

Be safe; be healthy - don't be me, I'm coming down with the flu - and have a wonderful weekend. Love ya~~
Kisses,
FAI.