Notes: Gosh, looking at this batch as a whole, most of these aren't very happy! Sorry about that! (EDIT 1/5/18 - I made changes to the end of Door 8 so now I hate it a little less! haha)

Door 7

-You're Byakuya Togami, right?! (#｀皿´)/

Togami glared down at his phone screen with distaste. A message from an unregistered sender. It wasn't entirely out of the ordinary for uncouth children to try trolling him as a way of staving off boredom, but...

Usually they didn't manage to find his personal texting address.

He decided to ignore it—if they sent another message, he'd simply block the number—and was about to put his phone away when it buzzed with another notification.

-Since when are you texting buddies with my big brother?!

Togami raised an eyebrow at the message. He wouldn't classify himself as "texting buddies" with anyone, really... but now he was somewhat intrigued. Who was this individual harassing him via text message? There were several people he communicated with on that email address who had younger siblings, so that didn't do much to narrow it down. But whoever it was, he would not tolerate someone within his social circles giving out his personal email without discretion.

Putting off the decision to block, Togami tapped out a short reply in response.

-Identify yourself.

He only had to wait a few seconds before receiving his answer.

-Komaru Naegi! And if you're really Byakuya Togami, then Oniichan's just not playing fair!

Naegi... Togami massaged his temple in exasperation. He didn't believe that the good-natured part-timer would give away private contact information, but he could easily imagine him carelessly leaving his phone unattended for a nosy little sister to poke around in. He'd have to give him a stern warning about that.

For the moment, though, he had the sister to attend to.

-Stop speaking nonsense. Why are you contacting me?

He tapped the edge of his phone impatiently as he waited, his desire to just block the sister growing with every passing second. Finally, after three minutes, he received a response.

-My friend reeeeeally wants to meet you and I've been trying to get Oniichan to set up a meeting but he's not cooperating at all. It's totally unfair to his romantic rival, so to level the playing field, I'm asking you directly. So can you please meet up with my friend Touko-chan?!

Togami rolled his eyes so hard it nearly gave him a headache. So much utter tripe in a single text message... Naegi had mentioned a friend of his sister's wanting to meet him, but Togami could not possibly be interested less. If he arranged meetings with every female who wanted to court him, he'd have no time to conduct the very business that made him attractive to them in the first place.

-I'm not interested, he typed back, immediately navigating to the appropriate menus to block her number.

Just before the he could confirm the block, though, one last message of hers managed to sneak through.

-Gosh, do you really like Oniichan THAT much? I didn't expect it of him, but he must be playing even dirtier than I expected if he already has you so thoroughly in the palm of his hand.

Togami's gaze sharpened into a harsh glare. That sister was truly delusional; he most decidedly was not infatuated with Makoto Naegi, and certainly not by any manipulations on Naegi's part.

He jabbed the block button harder than might have been entirely necessary.

Door 8

The cafe they stepped into was warm, and not just in temperature; low orange lighting, deep mahogany furnishings, and a soft, orchestral tune flowed through the establishment, enveloping its patrons in a rich, cozy atmosphere.

It was much more favorable to Peko than a typical pub.

"Do you come here often?" she asked Kirigiri as they settled into a booth.

The officer chuckled wryly. "No, not very. I certainly would like to, but between work and finances, it just doesn't always work out."

"Hinata seems to be able to find time for going out," Peko pointed out.

Kirigiri gave a small smile. "Well, Hinata-kun is... different from me. He..." She paused, her expression changing minutely before she spoke again. "He's in love, for one thing."

"Ahh." Peko looked down, running a hand along the finely finished tabletop. "My young master seems to be, as well."

"Imagine that." Amusement ringing clearly in her voice, Kirigiri pointed to the menu laid flat on the table. "I'd recommend the their special blend if you're not sure what to get. It's a nice balance."

"Ah, thank you." Peko looked at the menu for a moment longer, carefully considering her next choice of words. "I hate to sound rude, but..."

"Hmm?"

Peko turned her gaze towards Kirigiri. "Why did you invite me out tonight?"

Kirigiri stared at her for a long moment, silent and expressionless, until the server came to take their orders. Only after the server had left again did Kirigiri lean forward, folding her hands neatly on the table before she spoke again. "Pekoyama-san, if you'll allow me to be blunt..."

"Yes?"

"I think you feel more emotions than you would like to admit."

Peko furrowed her brow. "Why would you think that?"

"Because, loathe as I am to admit it, I'm the same way." Kirigiri's lips tugged into a small smirk. "Tell me, are you jealous of Hinata-kun?"

Peko frowned. "I am in no position to be jealous of him."

"I notice that you haven't denied it, though." Kirigiri sat back, folding her arms across her chest. "Do you harbor romantic feelings for Kuzuryu-kun?"

Peko felt irritation prickling at the edge of her consciousness, but she took a deep breath to calm herself. Being combative wasn't the appropriate reaction here. "I... wouldn't say that, no," she said honestly. "Perhaps I used to, but if I did, I didn't identify it as such at the time. Either way, Young Master's safety and happiness takes precedence over everything. If he finds that with Hinata, then I want nothing more than for them to be together." She paused. "But... my purpose up until now has been to watch over my young master. I wouldn't say that I'm jealous, but..."

"But it hurts to feel like you aren't needed."

Silence fell between them for several moments. "Yes," Peko agreed finally. "I suppose that's true." After a pause, she added, "I'm sure Young Master means no harm, though."

"Certainly," Kirigiri agreed with a chuckle. "They're both suffering from a bit of tunnel vision at the moment. I think we can forgive them of that for now."

The server returned, placing their drinks in on the table with soft clinks—the special blend for Peko, and café amore for Kirigiri—before leaving them to themselves again.

"Well," Kirigiri said as she picked up her glass, "let's not dwell on their thick-headedness right now. That's what our workdays are for."

Chuckling, Peko reached for her cup in kind. "Yes, I think you're right."

They quieted into a comfortable silence as they let their drinks warm their bodies—feeling that, despite being on opposite ends of the law, they were both in kindred company.

Door 9

"Does this even look interesting at all?"

"If your friend's as big of a car freak as you say, then probably."

Hinata tilted his phone from side to side experimentally, trying to find the best angle that didn't reveal a license plate number or a Kuzuryu crest.

There were three black sports cars lined up in the garage. They were sleek and shiny and... that was really all that Hinata was able to tell, as someone who knew very little about cars beyond how to operate one. He wasn't really sure what sort of car pictures Souda would appreciate, but he snapped a few shots of the hood, the wheels (?), and even one of the exhaust pipe (?).

"I don't know if this is what he'd want to see," Hinata muttered as he scrolled through his photo roll.

"I've got an idea," Kuzuryu spoke up, grinning. "Wanna make him jealous? You go sit in the driver's seat, and I'll take a picture of that."

"What?!" Hinata glanced at the car nervously. "No, I couldn't... I don't even understand what's so great about these cars, so—"

"And it'll make him burn with jealousy even more. So go on, live a little." Kuzuryu sauntered over, plucking Hinata's phone from his hands, and opened the driver's side door. "Give it a try."

Hesitantly, Hinata climbed into the car, careful not to scuff the upholstery as he did. He settled into the seat, and— oh. That was actually really comfortable.

"Nice, huh?" Kuzuryu said, leaning over the car door to look down at him.

"Yeah." Hinata ran a careful hand over the middle console, and then along the steering wheel. "I mean, sitting in here like this, even I can tell how high-quality it is."

"Right?" Kuzuryu grinned. "So you have your driver's license, right?"

"Yeah, it was required for— hold on, what?!" Pulled out of his amazement over the car's design, he whipped his head back towards Kuzuryu. "You want me to drive it?! I can't—!"

"I was just kidding." Kuzuryu pushed the door closed. "For now, at least. If you wanna join the clan, I could make you my personal chauffeur."

"I'm not joining, Kuzuryu."

"Yeah, yeah." Kuzuryu walked backwards with the phone raised, trying to find a good angle to take the picture from. "Hey, try to look smug or something."

"Why are you so intent on getting Souda riled up? You don't even know him."

Kuzuryu rolled his eyes. "Fine, whatever. At least make it look like you're kind of having a good time in there."

Well, that was easy enough. Hinata had never been in the driver's seat of a car that was so fancy—and he knew he probably never would again—so he let himself indulge in the moment and bask in the natural glory of the car.

He heard the camera snap once, then twice, and Kuzuryu seemed satisfied with the way the pictures turned out. "Yup, looks good."

Hinata began to open the door to get out. "Can I see—"

"Hold on, stay in there for a second."

Hinata froze, his hand on the handle. "What is it?"

Kuzuryu reached the driver's side again, leaning on the lowered window as he had before. "Look at me for a second."

Hinata raised an eyebrow. "Uh, I am looking at you, what are you—" He was abruptly cut off when Kuzuryu leaned over and kissed him.

Though shocked at first, Hinata quickly melted into the kiss, reaching up to cradle Kuzuryu's jaw in his hand. He gently coaxed Kuzuryu's lips open, gaining access to explore the other's mouth, their tongues entwining, and—

Click!

Hinata pulled away, the sudden sound alerting him to the possibility of someone else seeing them... but the only one there was Kuzuryu, grinning wickedly, his arm outstretched and holding—

"Kuzuryu!" he gasped, lunging an arm through the window to grab the phone, but the yakuza swiftly stepped back and out of reach. "Give that back! Did you just—"

Grin unfading, Kuzuryu fiddled with the phone, deliberately keeping the screen out of Hinata's sight. "Damn, looks like my finger covered the lens a little bit, but other than that, not bad."

Hinata felt his cheeks grow warm. "You really took a selfie of that?!"

"Yup. A present for you to do with as you see fit." He finally returned and handed over the phone. "Delete it if you really want, but I already sent it over to my phone, so I think that'd just be a waste."

Red-faced, Hinata took his phone and looked at his photos. Sure enough, there it was, photographic evidence of him locking lips with the heir to the Kuzuryu Clan.

Not that he was ashamed of it, of course, but...

...well, come to think of it, what was the problem? Beyond the initial embarrassment, kissing selfies were a pretty normal thing for couples to do, weren't they? Though he obviously couldn't make it his lock screen or anything.

"No," he said finally. "I think I'll keep it. There's just one problem with it, though..."

"Besides my finger?"

"Besides your finger."

"What's that?"

Hinata smirked. "Well, I just feel like that kiss didn't last nearly long enough. What do you think?"

Kuzuryu leaned through the window again, grinning deviously. "I think that sounds like something we can easily fix."

Door 10

Life was hard.

Life was especially hard after Yoi-chan left.

But still, maybe Ruruka shouldn't have tried hiring new help while buzzed on mimosas.

She sighed as she watched her new hire stumble about the shop. Of course he wouldn't be a sufficient replacement for Yoi-chan when it was only his first day on the job, but so far she just wasn't terribly impressed with Makoto Naegi. He was clueless, and clumsy, and too compliant, and when he laughed bashfully at himself he was so cute it made Ruruka want to barf.

Honestly, she was already growing bored of him. If she was going to keep the kid around, she'd have to find some way he could be more useful to her. What had he said he was studying in school? Some kind of psychology? That seemed kind of worthless, but...

"Hey, Naegi," Ruruka said, leaning over the counter. "Can you help me?"

Naegi blinked at her blankly for a moment, before looking back at the breads he was setting on display. "Um, I already am?"

"Not with the shop," she said, waving a hand flippantly. "I mean yeah, keep doing that, but like... can't you do your psychologist thing for me?"

"You mean... psychoanalyze you?" Naegi shook his head. "N-no, I'm not really—"

"Pleeeeease?" she cooed, giving the best puppy-dog eyes she could muster. "I could really use the help..."

Naegi seemed to rethink his options, then sighed. "Well, I guess... I can try my best? What do you want me to help you with?"

Ruruka wove her fingers together and propped her chin atop them. "Tell me why Yoi-chan left me."

"Uh..." Naegi let his gaze wander. "Yoi-chan... that's your ex-boyfriend, right? I don't... really have experience with romance and stuff..."

Ruruka scrunched her nose at the way his cheeks turned red. God, he was so cute it was gross.

"Anyway," Naegi continued, "why do you think he left?"

She scoffed. "Because he's a meanie-butt, duh."

"No, I mean..." He waved his hands aimlessly as if trying to grab the words out of thin air. "Like... what happened? Did he give you a reason for dumping you?"

"Oh, Yoi-chan didn't dump me." Ruruka inspected her nails boredly. "I was the one who dumped him. He was gonna leave, so I broke it off before he could hurt me instead."

Naegi paused, fiddling with the packaged bread. "So he... didn't want to break up with you? Did he say why he was going to leave?"

Ruruka laughed bitterly. "Oh, he wouldn't stop talking about it. He was offered this blacksmithing apprenticeship in Gifu, and I couldn't go with him. So instead of staying here with me, he decided to choose the dumb apprenticeship."

Naegi was silent for a moment. "So... was he planning to come back eventually?"

"That's what he said," Ruruka sneered. "Said he wanted to ensure a better future for us by honing his craft or whatever. Like I can trust that. What's the point if he has to leave me behind? He just wanted the abandon me, just like Seiko-chan did with her stupid big city hospital job."

For a long while, neither of them spoke. Naegi seemed to be shifting his weight uncomfortably as he organized his thoughts. Finally, he opened his mouth to speak. "Andoh-san?"

"Yeah?"

"Do you think you maybe have... some sort of persecution complex?"

Ruruka stared at him blankly. The kid was visibly uncomfortable, unable to meet her gaze, and after a while she sighed and opened the cash register with a cheery ding. She pulled out a few bills, then, shoving the drawer closed, she waved the money at him. "Okay, here you go."

Naegi stared at the money in confusion. "Wait, what...?"

"I've thought about it, and I guess I can run this place by myself after all." She shrugged. "So here's your pay for today. You can go on home and don't bother coming in tomorrow."

"Oh..." Cautiously, Naegi accepted the cash—and if Ruruka's eyes weren't deceiving her, he actually looked a little relieved. But of course he did. Everyone wanted to leave her eventually. "Um, okay. Should I just... leave now, then?"

"Yup." She snapped her gum and waved him out boredly. "Bye-bye, Naegi."

He turned to leave, then paused halfway across the floor before turning back towards her meekly. "Um, Andoh-san, I really think you should maybe talk to a qualified counselor... I can find a good psychological clinic for you if—"

"I said you can go now, Naegi," she cut in, more pointed in shooing him out the door this time. "I don't need your help anymore, so scram."

"Ah, well... If you're sure..." He glanced back towards the door. "Just, um, keep it in mind, okay?"

Naegi gave a shallow bow, and Ruruka watched as he finally stepped out of the door.

Yup. Everyone left her someday.

Life was hard like that.

Door 11

-Yoi-chan, I had to walk home all by myself again today! Can you believe how cold Hinata is?

-Yoi-chan, Hanamura wouldn't make my drink the way I wanted tonight! He said he was out of the juice but he must have forgotten to stock it just to spite me, don't you think?

-Yoi-chan! Someone came into the store today, and they left without buying ANYTHING! They must have thought my sweets looked terrible! What's wrong with their eyes?!

Cell phone reception was spotty at his apprenticeship site, but whenever Izayoi did pick up the slightest bit of signal, his phone would fill with text alerts from Ruruka.

Seeing them made him smile. The two of them might be broken up, at least nominally, but she still sent messages to him on a regular basis. Sure, they were mostly complaints, but that wasn't too much different from when he was still in Kibougaoka—there were just far fewer sweet nothings interspersed throughout.

Either way, it was good to see that Ruruka was still the same, that their separation hadn't changed her drastically. And once he finished his apprenticeship, she'd be waiting for him back in Kibougaoka, still the same woman that he loved.

Door 12

"And then he blocked my third email address, too! Can you believe it, Oniichan?!"

"Um, yeah, I can, actually. What I can't believe is that you have the audacity to still be badgering Byakuya Togami like that."

"That's 'cause you won't help a girl out in setting up her best friend!"

"Komaru, can we talk about this when I'm not mid-delivery?"

Standing outside the convenience store, Kuzuryu heard them before they came into sight: Makoto Naegi, delivery box in hand, and a girl he had never seen before following Naegi with her hands on her hips.

"Fine then!" With a huff, the girl turned and headed back in the opposite direction. "I'm staying over tonight, though, and we'll talk then!"

Once the girl was out of sight, Naegi sighed and continued on his way.

"Having some family problems?" Kuzuryu commented as the brunet walked by.

Naegi stopped for a moment, apparently just noticing Kuzuryu for the first time, and laughed bashfully. "Yeah, uh... it's a long, weird story."

Kuzuryu nodded silently, digging his hands into his pockets to try to look as casual as possible. "I, uh... didn't know you have a younger sister."

"Huh?" Naegi blinked at him. "Oh, yeah... that's Komaru." He chuckled a bit. "Do you have any siblings, Kuzuryu-kun?"

Kuzuryu was silent for a long while, considering his answer. He stared resolutely at the buildings in the distance, their roofs glowing with the last embers of the setting sun.

"Nah," he said finally. "I don't."