Spoiler Author's note
Trying out new conversational formatting for this chapter so please tell me Which one you like more. This chapter consists of things that are not legal in japan such as drinking if I'm correct characters(spoiler) should be somewhere between 18-19 which makes it illegal for them to drink. What we're doing about this is completely ignoring the law and act like they are of age.
Part 1: Discovery
*Jingle bells humming* Christmas was around the corner and snow has touched down in their small city. From afar Taiga would blend with the snow thanks to her small stature and the white trench coat that reached down to her shins. Taiga was called out for a girls' day with Minori and Ami, "Hey, Taiga over here" Taiga looked over to see the Ami with what looked to be a blueberry milkshake in Ami's hands and Minori doing her salute, "How's it going ladies"
"Great actually I was accepted into my dream college(Insert Name Here)" Minori exclaimed. It had been about half a year since graduation and the group was getting ready to move on with their lives. "So where is your dream college at" Taiga had said while gesturing to Minori to whisper or be quiet to counter Minori's overwhelming energy that was about to burst "I'm moving to ~(drum roll please)~ TOKYO!"
"Oh, really that is what you called us here for," Ami replied with an annoyed tone. She was wearing the same jacket and sweats that she normally uses to go to the store or small outing. "Sorry about that I just really wanted to celebrate because it seems like life is going so well for everyone"
Taiga and Ryuuji were planning on moving out into their place closer to Their respective colleges. Minori was moving to Tokyo for her dream college that was specially catered towards softball and extracurricular activities. More and more modeling business was piling up for Ami and she was planning of starting her brand. "Well, you called us out here to celebrate so let's get started" Ami gestured to a waiter to get her order "You girls want anything?"
3 Hours later
Close to the end of the block sat a small house that looked like it had been cleaned top to bottom, and the entire walkway was cleared of snow which was the only house on the block that had done so and a scent of lemon came from the cracks of the door. "See you Yasuko, hope you evening classes go well"
"Thank you sweetie see you in the morning" Yasuko and Taiga have been working around the clock in order to raise enough money for Ryuuji to go to college. Yasuko had started to take night classes for her Highschool(HS) diploma and Taiga was looking to pick up a second job so she could start saving for her college career.
30 Minutes later
*Very load knocking* "Coming, hold on a sec!" *More aggressive knocking* "Hold on a second!" *opens door* Standing in the doorway was a slightly hunched over Taiga which looked to be a bit tipsy and someone behind her that Ryuuji couldn't see. "Im HOme" she blurted out "Hey Takasu, sorry about Taiga" Kitamaru was standing behind Taiga catching her before she fell "What happened Kitamaru"
"Well I don't know what happened but I found Ami, Minori, and Taiga Trying to drink out of the wishing fountain near the mall so I rounded them up and walked them home" Kitamaru hands Taiga off to Ryuuji "Oh wow thanks I will make sure to put her to sleep" Kitamaru turned around and started to walk back "Now that I think about it since Taiga is sleep do you want to have her dinner for your troubles"
"Sure mind if I come in," he said as he turned around and Ryuuji moved out of the way for him to come in
10 Minutes later
"So has Taiga always been a drunk," Kitamaru said as he stuffed his face with Ryuuji's famously good pork cutlet. Ryuuji thought that the smell might be strong enough that it will wake Taiga up. "Well, I knew she would drink on occasion but never too this extent… This is new" As Ryuuji finished saying that he felt the air get thicker making it harder to think and talk. It was almost as if he was nervous that he has known and taken care of Taiga since 2nd-year Highschool. "What about you Kitamarua? Did you know about this"
Kitamaru put his chopsticks down and look to the mat that he was sitting on then back up at the door where Taiga slept and then to Ryuuji "I didn't know she was a drinker" Ryuuji picked up his chopsticks with the look of relief in knowing that he wasn't the only one who didn't know "but what I do know is that if someone gets drunk often or show signs of liking alcohol it could be a sign of stress or depression" Ryuuji heart stopped and the room fell silent. No noise no light no darkness the pork cutlet was a thing of the past.
30 Minutes later
The night passed and Kitamaru and Ryuuji finished their food "alright see you later Kitamaru" Ryuuji said trying to put on his best act "Hey man don't beat yourself up over not knowing something" Kitamaru said as he started thinking back to when he first met Taiga and Ryuuji "You not knowing something about the person you are with only means there is room to grow and you guys won't tire each other out"
"I will see you later Takasu, have a nice night" Kitamaru started to walk down the stairs "have a nice night"
I was about 800 words in when I remembered that my teacher said that contractions are worse but then had an internal argument over whether or not I should use them for a story since what my teacher said was angeled to research papers. What do you guys think? This chapter was inspired by a lot more animes since I have opened my horizons to more shows. The shows I used for today is Dragons Maid(Taiga working 2 jobs and coming home drunk) and Uzaki-chan wants to hang out(How easy it was for Taiga and the group to get drunk)