She was messier than he expected. Though it was probably by no fault of her own.
Even though her body was swaying unpredictably, her hands were dexterously entangled in his hair. Her nails scratched against his scalp, and—fuck—she elicited an actual response from him. His hands pressed against her waist, pulling her in even closer.
Then, it was done. She pulled back with a pop of their lips.
"I have to go to the bathroom," she mumbled, barely managing to get the words out concisely.
Hiruma's arms were left empty and cold. He stood in the tiny hallway at the back of the restaurant and bar. He could still hear the faint noise of his former teammates partying in the nearest private room, blissfully unaware that their former captain and manager had just kissed quite passionately in the hallway that led to the bathroom.
"What the fuck."
Musashi was starting to wonder where Hiruma had wandered off to. He had previously noticed Mamori sway out of the private room the former Deimon team had rented for the evening for their annual reunion. The friends had gotten pretty rowdy, and he figured Mamori needed to get away from the noise.
After Musashi was pulled into another drinking game with the Ha-Ha brothers, he realized that Hiruma had left the room at some point as well.
It had been nearly 10 minutes. Did he leave?
Musashi moved to the door of the private room and poked his head out. He saw the tell-tale spikes of his friend making his way out the front door. Sliding out quietly, Musashi found Hiruma just outside the restaurant. He was leaning against the wall, shoving two sticks of gum into his mouth.
"Still don't smoke, huh." Musashi laughed and moved next to his friend. He stumbled slightly with a cuss, the previous drinks clearly catching up with him. At least the cool autumn air could help him sober up.
"Shit poisons the lungs," Hiruma scoffed, blowing a bubble.
Musashi took Hiruma in with a hum. "You didn't drink?"
"Of course I did. The fatty keeps pouring me more."
"He's excited to see you," Musashi said with a laugh. Humming, he leaned his head back onto the wall behind him. Alcohol always made his head feel heavy. "Did you see Mamori?"
Hiruma clicked his tongue loudly. "Since when has she been fucking 'Mamori' to you?"
Musashi whipped his head so quickly, it made his vision swirl for a moment. "What?"
Hiruma turned his head away with another scoff. He popped his gum loudly.
"Damn. You are drunk."
"I'm fucking leaving." Hiruma moved to go back into the restaurant to grab his jacket—maybe flip off all his idiotic former teammates for good measure.
Musashi waved his hand quickly. "Wait, wait, wait," he called out, "I'm just joking around. Don't take it personally."
Hiruma stilled until he leaned back against the wall.
Musashi scratched his beard in thought. "'I thought you two weren't…"
"We're not." Hiruma cut him off bluntly.
"But…" Musashi let the sentence dangle.
"No buts," Hiruma frowned, "She just…"
Kissed me while drunk.
Hiruma ran his fingers through his hair with another curse.
Mamori hated hangovers. She didn't normally drink, but every year when the former Deimon team reunited for dinner and drinks, the nights always got fuzzy. Suzuna and Kurita were always the main culprits. Suzuna would lead the group in numerous drinking games, and Kurita—bless his heart—always overfilled her cup.
She should have crashed at Sena and Suzuna's apartment. It was much closer to the restaurant than her own, but she didn't want to intrude on the couple, especially when Sena was already struggling to get the drunk Suzuna into a taxi.
Mamori somehow managed to find her way into a taxi—though the details of how were non-existent—and stumbled into her apartment well into the night.
Now her head was pounding, and the beautiful morning sun was assaulting her eyes.
What even happened by the end of the night?
She recalls being in the private room with her former teammates, then at some point found herself in the bathroom, leaning heavily against the cool tiles of the wall. Then, she was outside. The party left the restaurant in a group and had said their goodbyes. They dispersed, some continuing on to other bars, some returning home on foot, and others, like Mamori, flagging down taxis.
Mamori groaned at her lack of memory. She hoped she didn't embarrass herself too much.
She found her phone still in her jacket pocket, which was thrown haphazardly on the floor. She had received a few texts. Some were from Sena. The first from last night asked her to call him when she got home. The next one, received just an hour ago, asked her to contact him soon.
Mamori smiled at the messages. The tables had turned over the years, huh?
She sent him a quick message and checked the others. Suzuna texted her as well that morning asking if Mamori was feeling as hungover as she was. Kurita texted her sometime in the night thanking her for coming out that evening. At least that's what she interpreted through his misspelled words. He also sent a picture of him and a few of the former Deimon members at another bar, clearly having visited a few more that night.
Finally, there was a text from Hiruma. Mamori was surprised. He hardly contacted her after graduating college. He had moved to America for a few years, having been offered a position on an American team as both player and analyst. He only moved back to Japan a year ago, joining the Japan National team.
Mamori had sent him an email congratulating him on his return, but, as expected, he hadn't responded. She was hurt by his aloof attitude. They had, after all, been a dynamic duo during their Saikyoudai years. They had worked closely together for so long, so he could have at least responded. They were never best friends, but she considered them… close.
Because of that, she wasn't even expecting him to attend this year's reunion. When the old Deimon team informally made it an annual tradition, Hiruma had missed the first few, having been in America, but even Sena took the time to join in when he was previously living in America as well.
Mamori's shock was turning into annoyance.
How dare that demon stroll in without so much as a warning. Most of the team had broken out into cheers and whoops when Hiruma had walked in with Musashi. Kurita nearly drowned in tears. Mamori had been so stunned that she barely noticed Suzuna not-so-subtly nudging her with an elbow. When she had snapped out of it, Mamori turned away, pretending not to care. Then, she had practically chugged the rest of her drink.
That's where the night became hazy.
Mamori massaged her pounding temples. Finally mustering up the strength, she opened his text.
You free today?
She blinked. Then blinked again.
That Hiruma was asking if she was free? He could probably make two calls and have every detail of her social life at his fingertips. Mamori huffed. She should say she's busy. She should type that she's unavailable.
Wait. Did he even want to meet? He could just be asking for something ridiculous as he did so often in college, like when he made her fly across the country just for research footage. Maybe she should just ignore him like he did to her, she thought with a breathy laugh. She was so caught up in her thoughts that the short vibration of her phone made her jump. She expected to see a text from Sena or even Suzuna, but instead, Hiruma had sent her another text.
Kiryuu Okonomiyaki at 7
The audacity of this man. He wasn't even asking! Well, she would not be jerked around by him anymore.
Mamori hated that she was walking into this quaint little okonomiyaki shop. She hated that she was 10 minutes early (her typical policy for being on time). She hated that she spent at least an hour choosing her outfit so that she looked nice but not too nice to make anyone think she was making an effort.
She tried not to hold her breath as she entered. She was greeted by one of the staff members before she heard a loud "Mamori-san!"
In one of the larger booth tables toward the back sat all the former Devilbat 2nd years. Mamori deflated. Of course Hiruma was not asking to meet with her alone. She smiled as she walked up to her old friends, still happy to see them.
"Glad you could make it!" Yukimitsu greeted with a wave. "Ishimaru was busy today."
Mamori hadn't actually noticed that he wasn't there. She greeted each of the men with a nod. Glancing at the seating arrangement, Yukimitsu and Musashi had taken one side of the booth and Kurita sat in a separate seat at the head of the table, which only left a spot in the booth beside Hiruma. She didn't look in his direction as she sat.
Musashi handed her a menu. "Nice to see you again so soon," he said with a smile. She returned the smile, and the table fell into easy conversations.
They had been a little too drunk to completely catch up with each other's lives last night, so the group updated each other. Musashi let out a low whistle when Yukimitsu bashfully admitted that he was planning on proposing to his girlfriend soon. Kurita bounced in his seat. "You have to introduce her to us sometime!" he exclaimed.
"We'll scare the poor girl off." Mamori waved her hand with a laugh.
Musashi pat Yukimitsu's back heartily. "Good for you," he grinned, "And here I thought Sena would be the first to marry."
Mamori sputtered. "Sena wants to propose to Suzuna?"
"That bother you, nee-chan?" Hiruma asked with a cackle.
Mamori shot him a glare. "Of course not. I just thought he would have talked to me about it." She twirled her glass of water between her hands.
"He didn't bring it up," Musashi said, "Just he and Suzuna have been together for a few years now, yeah?"
"Weren't you and that guy you were dating for a while talking about marriage, Mamori?" Kurita added joyfully.
Mamori choked on air. If she wasn't coughing, she could have sworn she heard Hiruma click his tongue. She took two massive gulps of water.
Kurita tapped his chin, "We never met him either. What ever happen-"
"It just didn't work out," Mamori interrupted quickly, her cheeks gaining color.
Musashi hummed. "Then you're still single now?" Mamori squirmed in her seat, and his smile grew wider. "How about dating me?"
"Eh?"
The table—save for Hiruma—stared at Musashi wide-eyed. "Wha-" Mamori was cut off when there was a sharp poke against her shoulder.
"Move. I'm going to the bathroom," Hiruma stared down at her.
"Rude," she scolded.
"It's going to be even ruder when I piss on the floor," he snapped back.
Mamori's frown deepened, but she stood so Hiruma could move out of the booth. Musashi laughed lightly as he walked away. "I was joking, by the way."
"You shouldn't tease like that," Mamori said, a sense of relief rolling over her. She definitely liked Musashi, and their friendship over the years had been enjoyable. But, dating was something else entirely.
The table fell back into comfortable conversation throughout dinner. Hiruma returned within a few minutes. After nearly two hours, the group rose from the table, still conversing and laughing. They moved outside, just like they did the night before, and continued speaking, making plans for future meets and wishing each other well.
"It really was nice seeing you again, Mamori." Musashi said as he zipped up his jacket.
"I told you to stop teasing me like that." She responded with a giggle.
Musashi smiled but said nothing else. He gave her a final nod before he began walking down the same way as Kurita and Yukimitsu. As Mamori turned, she almost slammed her nose into Hiruma's chest. She jumped back with a polite apology. Wait… why was he still here?
She stepped aside to move past him, but he moved with her, heading in the same direction. Mamori sent him a confused glance. "Do you live in this direction now?"
"I told you last night," he said flatly. They settled into a familiar stride. Nostalgia washed over Mamori as she remembered her college years with Hiruma. Walking to and fro on campus, traveling to other schools' games, going to grab a late night meal after working on data and analytics deep into the night. They were practically attached at the hip at some points.
What happened?
"Did you?" Mamori responded, trying to sound nonchalant, as if being next to him after years wasn't doing something to her heart.
Hiruma snorted. "You were fucked up."
A blush crept up Mamori's neck. "Please don't say it like that," she hissed, "It's impossible to stay sober with Kurita and Suzuna."
"If this is what I've been missing, I should have joined these parties earlier." He cackled.
Mamori bit back a retort. Yes, he should have. He shouldn't have just disappeared without so much as a word to her. He shouldn't have ignored her messages. He shouldn't have given her any hope. She shook her head. No, he never… She figured she'd stop deluding herself after all these years. She pushed a smile onto her face. "You should have. They're always fun, even if I can't remember much the next morning."
Hiruma stopped walking. Mamori noticed after a few steps and looked back at him quizzically. "What's wron-"
"What did you say?"
Mamori cocked her head. "The parties are fun?"
"No," he growled, walking up so that he loomed over her. His eyes narrowed. "Last night I told you that I lived a station away from you."
Mamori's eyebrows rose. "Really? So close?"
Hiruma's frown shifted into a scowl. "What do you fucking remember from last night?"
"Hmm," Mamori tapped her chin, "Just bits and pieces." She smiled bashfully. "Not much really. Just doing some drinking games, talking outside, getting a taxi." She glanced at Hiruma, still confused as to why he looked so annoyed. "I didn't say or do anything weird, right?"
Hiruma clicked his tongue loudly before brushing by her quickly.
"Hiruma?" She called out, nearly jogging to keep up with him. "What happened?"
He shoved his hands into his pockets and pulled out a pack of gum. He popped a piece into his mouth and barely said another word the rest of the walk to the station, despite Mamori's utter bewilderment.
Note: Characters are around 26-27
You ever set out to write a oneshot and end up writing a multi-chapter short series? Hahaha...
Updates will come quickly. Drop a comment/review! Thanks for reading~
