Prompt: Sharing

Characters: Izayoi, Inu-no-Taisho

Ai ai gasa

Living a sheltered life until reaching adulthood had made Izayoi a shy and insecure person and, consequently, had often prevented her from seizing the moment, leaving her with only a handful of truly happy moments and many regrets. At a certain point, however, she had reached her limit, mainly due to yet another crack in her still naive heart, and she had been able to use the opportunity to leave everything behind, especially her oppressive parents, who had so far prevented her from making her own decisions.

She had gained freedom and many mistakes.

But she was proud of those mistakes; through them, she had discovered herself, the world and strengthened her soul. Today, a few years later, she liked to think she was independent, a little more confident and even impulsive when the situation called for it.

Therefore, when that morning the demon she had been watching for a few weeks smiled at her encouragingly, she didn't flinch or run away as she once would have done. Sure, her cheeks immediately turned scarlet and she looked away in embarrassment, but she stood there, just a few meters away, so that she could feel his warm gaze on her back until the bus they were both waiting for arrived. Or had she reacted that way because she had realized she had been caught? After all, she hadn't even been that discreet and what little she had learnt, she mused, was perhaps not enough to evade a demon like him.

Izayoi had seen him for the first time a few weeks ago.

She knew everyone who waited for the 7.15 am 114, if only by sight, because she had lived in that neighbourhood for three years now and since she didn't own a car, it was the fastest and most convenient way to reach the dentist's office where she worked as a secretary. Thus, it never escaped her attention when there was a new face in the morning crowd. But to be honest, it wasn't the novelty he represented that attracted Izayoi when she saw him.

She would have noticed him in a larger crowd, and even then, she couldn't have taken her eyes off him.

She was enchanted by his long silver hair, the blue marks on his face and his eyes' unique colour. More than once, she wondered what it would feel like to be mirrored in them if they looked at her, and now that it had happened – if only for an instant – she was sure she could lose herself in them, so intense she could hardly look away. She was certain that if he had wanted to, the demon could have held her prisoner forever with his gaze alone and that if she had managed to escape him, it was by his own choice.

No, him being a demon never frightened her – for it was impossible not to recognize him as such – nor did she mind that some old woman didn't greet her anymore because she refused to give him a wide berth like everyone else did. Why should she? She had never been racist like her parents and most of the humans in that region were, and what's more, she had no interest in being squeezed in like a sardine on the small right side of the platform before even getting on the already-packed bus when it reached their stop. So, as she saw it, it was only a gain.

She could watch the man she had become infatuated with every day and, at the same time, breathe freely before her hectic day began.

She had done this every day, sometimes letting out a few sighs while other mornings she had given herself little pep talks in the mirror. Still, she hadn't been able to approach him.

She had grown up a lot and was no longer so naive, but she didn't have the strength required to take that step yet. That thought partly saddened her because, she told herself, what was the point of those changes if she couldn't do what a teenager would have done with her eyes closed? On the other hand, she used that defeat as an excuse to dare again.

It was just a pity that the days passed and now he had made it clear that her interested glances hadn't escaped him.

Reaching her stop and a few seconds before getting off, she cast one last glance at him out of the corner of her eye, but as if he had been watching her, he winked in response and then chuckled when she blushed again – even more than before. She quickly got off, bumping into more than one person, and turned the corner to leave the vehicle behind as soon as possible. When she stopped, she was out of breath, her heart was beating wildly, and her cheeks were still burning.

She brought a hand to her upper chest and tried to reflect on everything that had just happened.

Did he want to make fun of her? But that first smile had seemed so sincere. On the other hand, though, she hadn't so much experience to be sure. More importantly, how could she face him the following day and the day after that? Determination seemed to slip from her fingers as those thoughts occupied her mind.

What if, instead, he had acted because he had grown tired of waiting for her? After all, if he had caught her glances, he must have done so long ago. Izayoi refused to believe it had taken the demon so long to notice, so he must have been waiting for some other sign from her. After all, she knew that being inconspicuous wasn't really her forte; in fact, she bet the old woman had stopped greeting her because she had noticed her languid sighs. In that case, he must have found her at least interesting, right?

But which part was she to believe?

Just outside the office, Izayoi froze and looked at her reflection in the glass door and got the answer.

She wouldn't back down. Admitting that the demon was making fun of the naive little girl she had once been meant to go back to being her for real, throwing away her progress. She didn't want to go back to that reality. On the other hand, if she dared to hope and hers turned out to be mere illusions, she would still learn from her mistake. She wouldn't write another regret on her sad list. She knew that, if she failed, she would still be satisfied with having tried. Still, she would have to join the other humans on that side of the platform because she knew she couldn't face him again if he rejected her.

One step at a time was enough.

Right there, she decided she would approach him the following day and to hell with them all! To hell with racism, oppressive parents and weak persons that didn't dare to react.

Despite all those good intentions, however, Izayoi struggled to concentrate throughout the workday. In front of her, she could only see a pair of golden eyes so intense to seem unreal.

Izayoi sighed as she got up that morning, listening to the sound of rain beating down on the windows of her third-floor bedroom. At least the weather could have given her some respite; surely, that wasn't a good omen.

She didn't want to use the bad weather as an excuse to postpone – yet again – but her rational part knew that waiting for the bus on a rainy day was a major inconvenience.

Discouraged, she began her routine with even more haste than usual because it was a good habit of hers, on days like that, to arrive early and get one of the few coveted sheltered seats. Maybe she would get a lucky break, and he would arrive early as well. She hoped so, but when she reached the bus stop, the only other person present was the old woman who gave her a sullen look as a good morning. In response, Izayoi shook her head and slumped down on the bench after checking that it wasn't wet.

After twenty minutes, there was still no sign of him and Izayoi started to get worried; it would be her bad luck if the first time she was confident enough he didn't show up. Had fate read the fear in her heart and deemed her still too weak? Or had he decided to change his route as he was annoyed by her glances? Whatever the answer was, grandma had already elbowed her three times because she kept leaning in the direction he usually came from, hoping to see him pop up. She was about to give her a piece of her mind when she changed idea and offered her seat to a mother with a little son instead.

Then, just as she opened her umbrella, she saw him.

She hadn't seen him until now because he had been running too fast for her eyes, but when he reached the platform, he stopped, and Izayoi noticed him immediately. He shook his head and then his body, almost like a dog, to get rid of the water that had accumulated on his clothes and hair, and she wondered what good it would do him if, standing in the rain, he would soon be back to square one.

Then, fate intervened. Or the gods? Maybe those last thunders she heard. Whoever was, she finally got the right signal.

She was brave, wasn't she? And what did she care about wet clothes? She could find an excuse at work for them, and besides, she would get wet even if she stood there motionless.

Resolute, she took one step forward and then another until she left the crowd behind. Then the demon, who had been looking around as if searching for something – or perhaps someone? – saw her and opened his eyes wide. He straightened up and kept looking at her, and as much as those eyes increased the pressure, they also gave her an extra boost. It was as if they were encouraging her, telling her she had almost made it; one more step and she would feel happy and satisfied with herself for having achieved her goal.

Finally, she stopped in front of him, and without saying a word, she manoeuvred the umbrella so that it covered them both. She looked at him as if to ask if that innocent yet intimate position bothered him, and when he shook his head, she looked straight ahead, smiling more at herself than at him. And she couldn't see him, but he mirrored her smile and a new light touched his golden eyes, proud and amused at the same time.

Then, equally silent, he raised his hand to cover Izayoi's holding the umbrella and left it there. Both immediately knew that if she shivered, it was from the sensation the touch sent through her entire body and not from a gust of wind.

And she understood: for that day, Izayoi had everything she needed, and if the gods were magnanimous, she would still have it all the following day – and the day after that.

Ai ai gasa = literally to share an umbrella. In Japan, it's considered a romantic expression.