"Coming out of my cage, and I've been doing just fine,
gotta gotta be down,
because I want it all."
-The Killers
The remainder of Davina's Thursday passed by with an odd, almost hazy sort of quality. She caught her attention slipping from time to time as she progressed through her classes, and it took a significant amount of mental discipline to reclaim her focus. Despite her best efforts, her thoughts kept regressing back to Shuichi and what the near future held in store—such contemplation lingered at the back of her mind regardless of how hard she attempted to stifle it. When it came time for dismissal from her final class, she was considerably relieved. Apart from finishing up a single homework assignment, Davina had no outstanding tasks to complete for her evening. She decided to hit the library before heading home, intent on grabbing an afternoon coffee and completing the one academic task she had on her radar.
Much to her surprise, the library was ridiculously packed for a Thursday—there was no available seating to be found, and the noise level confined within the vast space was just short of intolerable. It grated on Davina's nerves from the moment she entered, causing her to wince in discontentment. Even the coffee shop near the entrance boasted a painfully lengthy line—it only took her a moment to reconsider her choice, and she opted to flee, withdrawing from the throng as quickly as she could manage. She assumed that many of her fellow students also had impending examinations the following day and were in dire straits to prepare themselves—hence the massive crowd present within the normally quietly occupied space. As she had already taken the measures to amply prepare herself for her own test, Davina had no qualms in abandoning her current plan in favor of heading home—she could always make herself a cup of coffee and wrap up her one assignment from the quiet and comfort of her apartment, an idea that very much appealed to her in light of her discovery.
Set on a course of action, she removed herself from the teeming vestibule and sighed deeply in relief upon emerging back outside. En route back through the quad, Davina was startled when she unexpectedly heard her name being called by a voice she did not recognize. She suddenly halted her step and turned her head in the direction of the unanticipated acknowledgement, only to be met by the inquisitive face of a male student she was not familiar with.
"So, you're Davina?" he offered in a manner of greeting, his gaze meeting hers and holding firm even as she quirked a mildly curious brow at him. He appeared to be about her age, hovering over her by several inches, rail-thin and lanky, with bright blue eyes and a thick wavy crown of messy chestnut brown hair. His Japanese was pristine, but judging by his appearance, he had evidence of genetics that were decidedly not native, same as her. This intrigued her to some extent, but she was put-off by his sudden intrusion and not feeling exactly friendly at his unforeseen demand of her attention.
"Erm, yes, I'm Davina," she replied, trying to mask the worst of her discomfort. She shared no classes with this student, and couldn't recall ever seeing him around the campus—the fact that he somehow knew her name made her feel somewhat uneasy. "Who are you?"
"I'm Lucas Akihiro," he replied without hesitation, thrusting his hand out as if he were meeting someone for a job interview. Davina hesitated, but shook it briefly. "I'm the head of the literary committee here at Chishiki No Eda—my friend, Kazuma, told me to keep an eye out for you. He said that you're a writer and that you were interested in contributing." He sighed in relief, his narrow shoulders heaving so heavily, it was nearly comedic to witness. "I can't tell you how happy I am that I finally found the right redhead—Kazuma didn't really give me many details about you other than your hair color, and he didn't specify what shade of red to look for…"
Upon his explanation, Davina felt herself relax almost immediately, the tension in her shoulders suddenly abating. Kazuma had previously declared that he was familiar with someone on the literary committee, and had offered to introduce them—he had failed to mention that he had already shared her interest with the party in question.
"Yes, I am interested," she responded confidently, fixing her companion with a mild smile. "And if it's any comfort, Kazuma didn't tell me that he had already spoken with you about me."
Lucas chuckled at her statement and shook his head. "Can't say that I'm surprised…he's kind of a space cadet sometimes…anyway, when can we meet up to discuss things? The upcoming publication is due in by next Friday, and if you have something you'd like to submit, it needs to be approved before then. I've got spots open for poems, short stories, you name it. Our weekly meeting is every Tuesday, and we're currently looking for an assistant editor to help with the campus magazine."
He talked swiftly, as if he were trying to complete multiple sentences in one short breath, and Davina was mildly perturbed at the rushed manner in which he was attempting to share information with her while not give her the opportunity to respond.
"Take a breath, Lucas," she said dryly, trying to keep the irritation out of her voice. "I'm free now, if you're available. If not, we can figure out a different time. I'm definitely interested in submitting something, but right now, I have no idea what. I haven't written anything lately, so I might not be able to make this publication. And as for joining the committee, I hadn't even considered that. One thing at a time, alright?"
"Yeah, sorry about that," he replied, looking sheepish as he scratched the back of his head. "I guess I was just a bit too enthusiastic—we don't get a lot of student submissions these days. I'm actually on my way to meet up with my study group in the library, so now is not a good time—are you free Monday afternoon?"
Davina nodded her head, somewhat relieved that there would be some time before their next conversation—Lucas was certainly an odd sort, but seemed nice enough. Now that she had an idea of what to expect from him, she'd be better mentally prepared to handle it come their next interaction.
"Yes, I am. My last class end at four—perhaps we can meet up in the library to discuss things further?"
Her companion quickly nodded his head in agreement, appearing pleased at her offer for a future meeting.
"That works—and if you have any current material you'd like to submit or talk about, make sure you bring it with you," he advised softly. "Do you draw or paint? Our editor-in-chief is big on mixed media submissions right now."
"I do, I'll make sure to bring my sketchbook," she replied, making a mental note to add the pad to her school bag when the opportunity arose, lest she forget.
"Excellent! I'll see you Monday! Nice meeting you!" Lucas offered, fixing her with a wide, almost boyish grin before taking his leave and heading back in the direction Davina had hailed from. She remained stationary for a few moments to collect herself—it had been such an odd interaction, and to be honest, she was relieved it was over. While she was certainly excited by the prospects of pursuing some involvement with writing, her impromptu meeting with Lucas had effectively put her on the spot and she had been woefully unready for such a cavalcade of conversation—all she wanted now was to thoroughly enjoy some quiet in the comfortable solitude of her own space.
Much to her good fortune, the remainder of Davina's trip home was had in peace. She was quick to complete her one withstanding assignment, forgoing the coffee in favor of just jumping in and getting it done. It took her less time than anticipated, and she found herself desiring not only a coffee but a delicious pastry in which to keep it company. After some consideration, Davina decided to head over to the Koeda Café to treat herself, opting to bring along a book to read. She perused her bookshelves, only to find that nothing she had on hand truly appealed to her—she had read most, if not all, of the titles she owned multiple times. In truth, Davina had been wanting to visit the local bookstore within the downtown district nearly since she had first moved in, but had forced herself to avoid it—book stores were a significant source of danger for her, and she didn't want to envision the argument with her parents if she went in one unsupervised and dropped a mortgage payment worth of money on novels. Perhaps that was a bit of an exaggeration, but if left to her own devices, such a thing certainly was possible.
Prior to her relocation, Davina's parents had given her access to the account they had put aside for her to use while attending college—they had been generously adding funds to it since she was born, and the amount of money it boasted was no small number. They had also bestowed upon her a credit card to use for larger purchases and emergencies. Of course, her mother had made it a point early on in life to teach her money management skills, and for the most part, Davina was very careful with her finances—she knew how to live frugally, and wasn't one to spend carelessly—hell, she wasn't even a huge fan of shopping for things like clothes and accessories, as most girls her age were. But books…books were her weakness—there were so many of them, such a variety of genres, of storylines to follow and characters to fall in love with, of endings to cry over and sequels to devour. It had been a fairly long time since she had last acquired anything new, and now seemed as good a time as any—of course, she could always visit the university library and borrow a decent collective, but given her penchant for rereading, she'd ultimately end up purchasing the titles she favored anyway, so there was little point in doing such a thing, or so Davina told herself.
After freshening herself up, Davina grabbed her purse and headed to Kaiden's downtown district, directly making her way into the bookstore, which was cleverly named Shosetsu Shiso—Novel Thought. It occupied a narrow storefront, but was amply filled with floor to ceiling shelves of books, all carefully organized by genre. The overhead lighting was muted, and the air smelled vaguely of sandalwood incense, woodsy and mildly sweet all at once. Apart from the collection of tall bookcases, the only other furniture to occupy the narrow space was a small desk near the center of the shop that served as the clerk's station and the checkout. While a far cry from the massive chain bookstores Davina had grown up with, she found herself enthralled by these new surroundings and took everything in with a happily curious eye.
Of course, most of the material housed within Novel Thought hailed from native writers, but Davina spied some popular American titles she recognized perched within the Best Sellers among the residential content. During her perusal, she came across several novels by popular Japanese authors she had already read, some in their original format and some via translation. While she was sorely tempted to select a paperback copy of Haruki Murakami's mid-eighties thriller, Hard-Boiled Wonderland and the End of the World, Davina had already read the story, and ultimately wanted to pick out something brand new to immerse herself in. Slowly, she flittered her way from shelf to shelf, her eyes tracing over each spine with careful consideration.
While searching, a single title caught her attention—it was a hardback novel, fairly thick, notably lacking a paper dust jacket that typically accompanied such books. The cover itself was a deep gray, and the font the title was printed in along the spine in silver was a strange one, reminiscent of Corsiva style calligraphy. Issho ni shita—Together Below, when translated—curious, Davina withdrew the book from its home and found it to be lacking any sort of cover art or story description. While this might have dissuaded another person, it only sought to intrigue her further, and she quickly cracked the cover, slipped past the author's note, and delved right into the prologue—much to Davina's pleasure, she discovered that the story was one revolving around the affair of Hades and Persephone, which was among her absolute favorite tales in Greek mythology. She only advanced several lines further before making the decision to purchase the book, content with her little literary discovery and eager to begin reading.
With her prize in hand, Davina made her way over to the checkout and cashed out, fixing the clerk with a pleased smile as he handed over her purchase and nodded in farewell. She was walking towards the door when she felt the familiar jolt of her phone as it vibrated from within her purse—once she was outside, she withdrew it from its holding place and opened up the message she found waiting there. A small smile formed on her lips as she spied Shuichi's name at the very top of the tiny screen.
'Hope your day was kind to you. I was just about to head into work, but wanted you to know that I was thinking about you', the text read, and Davina suddenly felt flustered, her cheeks warming at the brazen statement as she continued to read the correspondence. 'Very much looking forward to seeing you tomorrow night—enjoy your evening.' It was such a short and straightforward message, but the underlying tones were unmistakable—after their earlier, not-so-innocent interactions on the train, there was no doubt in Davina's mind that he too was experiencing similar urges, and, by the sound of things, could very well be planning to act upon them in some capacity when the opportunity to do so presented itself.
The realization prompted a whirlwind of different emotions to gather inside of her mind: excitement, apprehension, lust, timidity—the conflicting feelings clashed together, causing questions caused by her thoughts to ripple out in a wave-like effect that almost inspired a sense of dizziness. It was a cavalcade of raunchy what-ifs and awkward but-hows, and Davina forced her attention away from such conceptions—if she dared to over-think things, she'd undoubtedly ruin the moment for herself, and that was the very last thing she wanted. It was best to emerge herself in a distraction to keep her mind occupied—luckily, she had just acquired one. Now all she had to do was reach her current destination, grab a delicious snack and dive in.
While heading in the direction of the Koeda Café, Davina typed up a quick reply, keeping her response fairly generic. She sent it along just before pushing her way inside—much to her pleasure, the owner, Kazuya, was working the counter—as she hadn't been in for quite a while due to school obligations, Davina was worried he wouldn't remember her. That fear immediately fled when the older man met her anxious gaze and swiftly smiled widely, his eyes lighting up from behind their large square lenses.
"Ah, Davina! Lovely to see you in! It's been a while, hasn't it?" he offered kindly as she made her way over to the counter. Luckily, there were no other customers lingering around, waiting to order, and the dining area of the café was sparsely populated, at least for the moment.
"Yes, it's been a few weeks now," she replied with a short nod. "Busy with homework, and keeping up with my classes. How have you been, Mr. Kazuya?"
"Oh, I can't complain," he responded with a soft chuckle. "Been staying busy, as usual. You know how it goes. What can I get you today? The usual?"
"Yes, please," Davina said with a small smile—it occurred to her that she truly missed stopping in the café, and made a mental note to do so more often. There was a comforting familiarity in visiting that she didn't get much these days, and wanted more of. "And an order of the matcha daifuku, please." She could taste the sweet cream that filled the sticky mochi pastries already, and could feel her mouth salivate with anticipation of their deliciousness.
"Coming right up," Kazuya offered agreeably, proceeding to ring her up. Davina paid for her order, and then went to claim a place to sit while her items were prepared. She selected a small corner booth near the back of the café, in close proximity to tiny wait-station—it was rather secluded from the handful of other patrons inhabiting the space, and she slipped into the seat facing away from the populated dining area. Without hesitation, she settled in, placing down her purse and opening her newly acquired book, turning it to the start of the prologue to reread over the tiny excerpt she had sampled while in the bookstore.
She was nearly done with it when a familiar voice unexpectedly spoke to her, effectively startling her out of the zone she had immersed herself in. Davina whipped her head upwards, her attention fleeing from the page and her eyes growing wide as her gaze met that of Shuichi. He carried a small tray bearing her beverage and snack, and was dressed in a simple uniform: black slacks with matching slip-resistant shoes, a soft blue button down shirt that bore the café's name upon the left breast, and a navy blue half apron secured about his waist.
"Hello, Davi," he offered quietly, mirroring her surprise if only for a brief moment before fixing her with a warm smile.
. . .
Much like Davina, Shuichi found it somewhat of a challenge to concentrate on the academic aspects of his day—it took considerable effort to wrangle his mind, which was adamant on clinging to questionable thoughts and building salacious scenarios around them. Despite keeping such potent urges at bay, they refused to vacate entirely, only encouraged by the events that had transpired earlier during their brief train ride. He was hoping they would continue traveling down their current path, although the final destination for said direction had yet to be fully determined.
As expected, he was somewhat relived when his educational obligations for the day were completed—of course, he still had two homework assignments to wrap up, and an evening shift at the Koeda Café awaited him. He used the spare time between responsibilities to finish his outstanding coursework within the quiet of his bedroom, treating himself to a quick snack before taking a short shower and donning his uniform. The house was blissfully silent, currently occupied only by himself—Shuichi found himself wishing he could remain and enjoy the peace, for it was indeed a rare occurrence, but knew that such a thing was impossible. His step-father relied on him to be a model employee, and Shuichi did not want to disappoint him.
In truth, he only accepted the job offer because Kazuya was desperate for reliable people—Shuichi hadn't been actively seeing employment when the suggestion was made. Initially, his mother had been against the idea of him working, fearing it would diverge his concentration from his studies, and his grades would suffer. But knowing that it would greatly help Kazuya as well as provide him extra funds prompted him to agree, and he was swift to prove that he could manage the additional workload without risking his academic prowess—this effectively quelled Shiori's concerns, and there hadn't been any further discussion of protest.
As it were, there were countless days where the café and his duties there were the last thing Shuichi wanted to involve himself in—but he kept those feelings to himself, never once complaining. It was just another step in living a simple human life—a bland, painfully banal one, but somewhat useful. The money he earned enabled him to do little things that brought him gratification, such as treating his mother to their weekly brunch, and that alone was worth the effort. But despite this, it didn't make it any easier to concede to his obligations when he desired to spend his time in a different manner. Unfortunately, today was one of those days.
Much like he always did, Shuichi swallowed back his reluctant attitude and left for his destination. During the brief walk, he penned a text to Davina, casually reinforcing the idea that she was very much present in his thoughts. He clicked the option to send it along just as he crossed the threshold into the café, immediately being greeted by his step-father, who seemed relieved to see him. While he made his way towards the office to clock himself in, Shuichi felt his phone tremble within the confines of his pocket and withdrew it at once, intently studying the tiny screen.
'My day was good, and you've been on my mind as well. Hope work goes quickly—see you tomorrow.'
In spite of the simplicity of the message, Shuichi found a smile tugging at the corners of his mouth. But he couldn't permit himself to get lost in thought, not when he was due to report to Kazuya for his first task of the evening. After punching in via the office computer, Shuichi returned to the café's front end, where he found his stepfather in the middle of brewing a latte. The pair exchanged pleasantries as Kazuya finished the beverage, adding the cup onto a small serving tray that already hosted a ceramic plate of matcha daifuku and a dessert fork atop a tiny napkin.
"Would you mind taking this to table sixteen?" the older man asked as he took a step back from the counter. "I need to pop into the kitchen and refill the cream."
"Of course," Shuichi readily replied, reaching for the tray and carefully positioning it in his hand before heading in the direction of the table the order was due at. As he made his way over to the corner, his gaze caught a familiar glimpse of copper hair—he swallowed hard, immediately met by the unmistakable aura that hung in the surrounding air. He slowly approached his destination, and as Shuichi inched closer, it was quickly revealed that his assumption was correct—it was Davina sitting there, alone in the booth, with her attention captivated by a book. The aroma of her unique perfume only sought to absolutely confirm that it was indeed her.
Shuichi froze mid-step, internally cursing his poor luck. He had certainly realized that there was a decent chance of this exact scene coming to pass, given how close in proximity they all were, but he hadn't really considered what to do in the event that it did. Not that it mattered much—Davina wouldn't judge him for his occupation, he knew that for certain. No, he was more concerned over Kazuya becoming curious and approaching to investigate the situation—as fond as he was of his mother's husband, Shuichi was a fairly private person, and was not partial to sharing his personal business with others. There would be plenty of questions that he had no desire to answer, and he didn't want to see Davina put on the spot in such a manner, either, especially considering her proclivity for anxiety when in the presence of strangers. He decided it would be best to keep things short and simple while avoiding her as best he could—it was better that way for everyone. He only hoped she wouldn't misread his distantness and become upset over it.
Shuichi approached her table and paused directly in front of it, waiting for her to recognize that she had company. But Davina's gaze was locked into the book she held, her mind failing to register his presence.
"Hello, Davi," he said softly, his voice barely above a whisper as she suddenly met his stare, pulled out of her literature induced trance and back into reality. Her eyes became wide as the realization sank in, and Shuichi smiled down at her kindly, finding her reaction mildly amusing.
"H-hi, Shuichi," she replied, the shock causing her voice to waiver slightly. He placed the tray down upon the table, relocating her drink and the plate bearing her pastries onto the surface, taking care to give them ample enough space away from her novel. "I didn't realize that this was where you worked."
"Well, surprise," he replied, offering her a dry chuckle. "It's my step-father's establishment."
Davina's demure face contorted with further revelation as she appeared to piece several thoughts together.
"Mr. Kazuya is your step-father?"
Now it was Shuichi's turn to be surprised—he certainly hadn't been anticipating that as a reply.
"Yes, that's right," he responded, quirking a curious brow down at her. "How did you—"
"I've come in here a bunch of times since I moved to Kaiden," Davina explained quickly, the words fleeing her lips before she could stop herself from interrupting her companion. "He introduced himself to me during my second time here and has always been exceedingly kind to me during every visit. He did mention he had a stepson who was attending my school—small world, huh?"
"That's a way to put it," Shuichi replied almost curtly, but kept his smile. He knew it was time to end the conversation, lest he draw Kazuya's unwanted attention. "Well, it was wonderful to see you, even with the circumstances—I must get back to work. Just let me know if you require anything else. I'll talk to you later?" He ended his statement with a question, content to see Davina nod her head in agreement. "Enjoy."
Withdrawing the tray, Shuichi took his leave from her table, feeling the pressure of Davina's stare on his back as he retreated. He did not see her again that evening—not long after their brief conversation, things had picked up and café had become fairly busy. Shuichi wasn't even sure when she had departed—he only came to realize that the table she had been sitting at had been vacated when he dropped off an order to a table nearby. Despite being somewhat disappointed in her silent departure, he was also relieved—he had managed to skate around an awkward exchange, at least for the time being.
Shuichi made it through the remainder of his shift with ease—he was still more than happy when closing time finally came around, as he was exceedingly eager to get home All he desired in that moment was a blissfully long hot shower, followed by the quiet privacy of his bedroom—he needed the chance to sort out his thoughts and considerations for what lay ahead, and wished to do so from the comfort of his bed, free from outside distractions. The second he made it home, he went ahead with such plans, pausing only to speak briefly with his mother, who had just gotten home from work herself. It was obvious that she wished to converse longer, but Shuichi wasn't in the frame of mind for such a thing—he gently begged off, citing that he had an examination early the following morning and was very tired. Shiori did not push, instead wishing him a good night and fixing his hand with a quick, affectionate squeeze before gesturing for him to move along.
Once he was within the bathroom, he locked the door behind him and started the water, allowing it to grow to a pleasantly hot temperature as he slowly removed his clothing—it had been a long and eventful day, and there was little doubt within his mind that tomorrow would be more of the same. Whatever awaited him in the near future, Shuichi wanted to be well rested—he would need all the strength he could get.
. . .
Author's Note: More apologies for the extended wait. As I work at the nearby airport, which is a hub and always saturated with people, regardless of the state of things, work has been utterly brutal and is literally sucking the life out of me, heh. But I'm in the middle of revising the next chapter as we speak and I will be posting it shortly, either tonight or tomorrow. My appreciation to the anonymous guest who posted a review recently, I'm so sorry to make you wait. Unfortunately, with the holiday season just around the corner, my job will only grow more hectic, but I promise that I will be making the greatest effort I can manage to continue posting as often as possible. As always, my gratitude goes out to all of you, dear readers—be safe out there.