Disclaimer: don't own 'Durarara!' or anything from that world.
Luminesce
Is the world one of coincidence or fate?
Hikari Shibata lowered her head, eyes trailing the outside world. A pair of light-winged birds flew past the window.
Maybe, it's both.
That was a reasonable presumption. Hikari might not have lived very long, but she had seen many things. The unusual was hard to avoid in Ikebukuro, especially when one knew Shizuo Heiwajima. He had led her to a maze of chance meetings, a web of stories that so often coincided without intention. Surely, with the number of coincidences, there had to be some sort of plan for it all – whether by God, or the will of the spider on the web.
She was far too lucky to have met Shizuo for it to have been an accident.
Even now, she could recall the day vividly. She had moved to Ikebukuro three years ago, in hopes of making it big with her music; a dream. What she had managed to find was a regular gig at a local bar, where Shizuo had been bartending at the time.
Things had only escalated from there.
It hadn't been that long after before he lost the job – and was also banned from the premises – but a series of consequences, premeditated or not, led to their continued meetings. Not much had changed, the founding of 'them' remaining. If either lamented one thing since their meeting, it would be that Shizuo no longer heard her sing.
As to why she was so comfortably curled up on Shizuo's couch, that was best explained by the date; the twentieth of January, Shizuo's birthday.
She had stayed the previous night after attending to a minor injury of Shizuo's, and decided that she was rather too lazy to bother going home. Shizuo didn't seem to mind sharing his bed.
Outside, the lights of Ikebukuro were flickering to life. Hikari loved the view of the city. Metal towers littered with plants, a land thriving with people. The city glowed and pulsed with life – almost luminesce. There was only one person she wanted to share that with.
He arrived indiscreetly, for someone with the reputation of being the strongest man in Ikebukuro. Shizuo was barely audible as he stumbled through the door.
When he noticed her sprawled over his couch, he simply said, "Hey."
Hikari's lips twitched into a smile. "Hey."
Her hair, lank and shoulder-length, hung over the arm of the chair. It was strange to see her so makeup-less. Hikari had a habit of accentuating her heavy, arching brows and full lips. She often claimed it was to drawn attention away from her 'chipmunk cheeks'.
Shizuo couldn't have cared less. He was always distracted by her eyes; green, like the light filtering through the leaves.
"You look like shit." Hikari remarked, sitting up.
Shizuo felt his feet drag as he shut the door and struggled across the expanse of his apartment. Pitying him, Hikari stood and met him half way.
"I hate birthdays." He sighed.
A smile continued to play at her lips. "I know." She replied, before taking his glasses from him and setting them on the coffee table.
"Tom made me celebrate with him."
"And you didn't invite me?"
"You didn't answer your phone."
She shrugged. "To be honest, I was probably still asleep. I didn't get up till three."
"Obviously." Shizuo responded dryly, glancing down at her clothes. The baggy t-shirt and shorts also doubled as her pyjamas.
Hikari stepped backwards, collapsing back on the couch. "Sit down." She ordered, when Shizuo made no move to follow.
He listened without indication he would. Like usual, he was perched on the edge. His height often made him look like a bird when sitting, and now was no exception. Hikari restrained her laughter, but only just.
Instead, she announced, "I know you don't like birthdays, so I'm not going to do anything big. But-" Shizuo turned to stare at her, "-I have a present for you."
Hikari's hand reached under the couch, where her hand met a small box. She withdrew, before kneeling on the sofa to present the gift to Shizuo. She tried to make it as unceremonious as possible, for the sake of avoiding embarrassment.
"Thanks?" he guessed.
Hikari let her hands fall against his shoulder. "You're welcome."
Shizuo's fingers fiddled with the box lid as she continued to say, "It's not much, so if you think of anything else you would like, tell me."
Eventually, as the box continued to best Shizuo, Hikari was forced to intervene. One hand on his wrist, stilling him, the other working on the lid.
"I don't want you breaking it." she explaining, more as a warning than anything else. Hikari had few pressure points, and other than her sister, she also hated to see her money go to waste.
"Fine."
The lid came off easily for Hikari, after wriggling it halfway up. Shizuo shot her a curious look, to which she smirked.
"A lighter." He summarized.
Hikari laughed shortly, before her head fell onto Shizuo's shoulder. He tensed a little, nerves preceding the kiss he planted on her forehead.
"Well, I did break the other one," Shizuo realised, "Thanks, Hikari."
"Don't be. It was my sister's and mine, but I don't like her smoking. So I'm giving it to you."
He grunted. "I said thanks."
"Well," she paused breathlessly, "I think you should save that thanks for later."
"Why?" There was a suspicious edge to Shizuo's tone.
Rather than answer with words, Hikari swung one leg over Shizuo's. Knowing the game, he leant back and let her fingers curl into his bleach-blonde hair. Her lids fluttered, breath hitched, as her lips skittered across his cheek. Though conscious of his strength, Shizuo couldn't resist the urge to hold her. His fingers were gentle against her face, yet steadying on her waist. She was tease, they both knew it, and Shizuo reluctantly admitted that he liked it.
"I was thinking," Hikari said, pulling away, "we could order pizza for tea."
"Good idea."
"Yeah, it is- wait, what do you mean good idea?"
Shizuo's head flopped against the back of the couch. "Good idea. You can't cook."
Hikari scoffed. "I so can." When he snorted, she felt compelled to add, "I make excellent microwave meals."
A smile drifted onto his lips. "Pizza it is." Shizuo decided.
Hikari sighed wearily, before rolling herself back onto the couch. She easily nestled herself into the crook of Shizuo's arm, her head the perfect height to rest on his shoulder.
"Aren't we ordering pizza?" he wondered.
"In a moment."
It was so peaceful, so quiet, that Hikari felt as if she could have slept. Shizuo was taking his time pulling a cigarette from his pocket. The click of the lighter followed the exhale of relief. It was a lovely little moment, and they both found themselves wishing every day to be as uneventful as this.
It was a moment that lasted only briefly, before being broken by the ring of the phone.
"Damn it." Shizuo muttered.
Hikari followed up by saying, "I'll get it."
"Just ignore it." He suggested, despite Hikari already being up.
She stepped over his outstretched legs, proceeding to make her way to the kitchen. Shizuo's house phone was, luckily, a wireless, but sat charging on the bench in that that room. It had hardly been surprising to discover he didn't use it much; at least he saved on bills.
On the fourth ring, Hikari answered. "Hello?"
"You're not Shizuo."
"Kasuka?"
Should she have been more surprised Kasuka Heiwajima had the time to call, or that he even remembered Hikari after meeting her just one time?
"Is Shizuo home?" Kasuka asked, ignoring her question.
Hikari spun around, facing Shizuo. He hadn't moved from the couch, and a cloud of smoke hovered around his lips.
"Yes." She replied. "Ringing to wish him well, I guess?"
"Yes."
"Okay," she paused briefly, "…Kasuka?"
"Yes?"
"Could I ask your advice on something?"
"Yes."
No doubt Hikari's heavy outbreath created static over the line. "What would be a good present for Shizuo?"
"You should know." Though Hikari knew little of Kasuka, she felt like he was frowning.
"Should I?" she echoed, her confusion mirroring his.
"Well, you're his girlfriend."
As if sensing the rush that raced through Hikari, Shizuo glanced around at her. She managed a tight smile, thanking herself for not dropping the phone. "…Am I?"
"It was my impression," Kasuka added, "So I'm sure he'd be happy with anything from you."
"Oh, good. Because all I've given him is a second-hand lighter."
"Hikari, who are you talking to?" Shizuo called out from the lounge.
She set her shoulders and marched over to him. "Kasuka." She replied, before falling over the arm of the chair.
She settled down with her legs hanging off, her head resting in Shizuo's lap. Before he could grow irate, she flashed him a wide grin.
"Can I speak to Shizuo, please?" Kasuka's voice drifted from the phone once more.
"Of course you can." She drawled, without intending to comply.
Without feeling it necessary to wait, Shizuo took the phone directly from her hands. The smoke was lowered away from his mouth, while the receiver brought to it. Hikari sighed softly, before deciding that to make this a fair trade, she needed to take something from him.
"Kasuka." greeted Shizuo roughly.
Hikari shuffled around until she was seated upright. Shizuo was too busy listening to Kasuka to pay attention to anything else; and that just made it all the easier to take his cigarette. His immediate reaction was to grab her wrist, holding in her place.
"What do you think you're doing?" Shizuo growled, before muttering into the phone, "No, not you Kasuka. Hikari's being annoying."
"That's a little bit rude, Shizuo, but I'll forgive the insult because it's your birthday."
Hikari's free hand began to pry at his fingers, which easily complied. Once free to move, she made a quick attempt to stand.
"Just keep talking to your brother." She ordered, flouncing across the window.
As it turned out, Shizuo wasn't even listening. It wasn't necessary when he was already doing as requested. "…yeah. How soon are you leaving?"
"Ass." She murmured, softly and with strange fondness. It wasn't often that she displayed either of those traits.
Her eyes swept across the room, before returning the city beyond. Its towers rose and fell, a glowing silhouette against the dark night. Smoke filled the air as Hikari put the cigarette to use.
A thought niggled at her in her solace. It was a persistent worry that had yet to cease since its appearance at Kasuka's words. He had presumed what she had always doubted, because it had never been said. While Hikari believed that not all things needed to be spoken to be known, there were exceptions to the case. In light of her doubt, she had figured this to be one of these.
Should she ask Shizuo? The answer could never be so terrible that she couldn't bear it.
"Hikari?"
The woman turned her head. "What?"
Shizuo's curious gaze trailed her. When she made to turn back towards the window's view, his frown deepened.
"Yeah." He said, but not to Hikari. "Thanks for calling, Kasuka. I know you're busy."
Their exchange lasted a few seconds longer. Neither of the brothers – the younger in particular – were eager for a long conversation, so it was no surprise that the phone call was ending so soon. While they concluded their goodbyes, Hikari walked over to the table and squashed the smoke out. The remains were committed to the ashtray for the time after.
Shizuo's parting remark to his brother was a simple, "Seeya."
The phone clattered onto the table. "Well, that was a surprise." Hikari remarked.
"What was?"
"Your brother calling you. I would have thought he would have been too busy, with his career and all."
Shoulders rose in a casual shrug. Shizuo's pants bunched as he rose to his feet – which, Hikari had only just noticed, still wore shoes. Cleaning the carpet again was a detestable idea, so she hoped that, if needed, he would take up the job. It was his mess, after all.
As Shizuo drifted past, Hikari grabbed his hand and allowed herself to be pulled along. They reached the window in a few steps. With an apathetic delicacy, the pair arranged themselves against the frame. Shizuo, with his back mostly towards the window, kept his arms loose until Hikari moved close. She had no problem lying back against him, nor guiding his hands around her waist.
"You look sad." Shizuo remarked.
"Do I?"
"Are you?"
"No." Hikari decided. "Just thinking."
"About?" Shizuo's thumb grazed her knuckles with a gentleness that had been practised.
"Things."
Shizuo's shoulders fell. "If you're going to be difficult about it, I might as well just go to bed-"
She felt disinclined to agree. "Fine, not that you would do that without eating first," Hikari grumbled, "But I was just wondering what we are."
"We?"
"Yeah, you and I. Me and you. This."
Hikari had to take a step away, spinning around to face him. Shizuo look completely clueless. "You mean…are we…?" he mumbled.
Her lips began to purse, nervous, as she gave a jerky nod of affirmation. Shizuo's blank stare only continued, bordering dumbfounded, until a smile took root. As it spread, Hikari's nerves grew worse – she almost wished she hadn't said anything.
"Of course, idiot." He scoffed at last.
A breath long held finally escaped. Hikari's lips tugged into a shaky smile, though the truth of her relief could be found in the marks her nails had left from her clenched hand.
"Were you really worried about that?" Shizuo wondered.
"Weren't you?"
He gave an air of dismissiveness, without even moving. "What we label ourselves doesn't matter to me. As long as I know you'll be with me, I don't care about anything else."
Hikari considered his words for a moment. "That's…sweet." She decided.
He swallowed his objection, realising that this was something he shouldn't ruin. Shizuo found his only move forward to be the simple action of stepping towards her. Hikari welcomed his embrace, resting her head on his shoulder.
"You said to tell you," he began, "that if I thought of something else I wanted…"
She nodded. "Anything within reason." She clarified.
"Then would you sing for me?"
Hikari's eyes looked up and across, through the window, to the iridescent Ikebukuro. She was silent for a moment, but eventually said, "Okay."
Her lips parted and Hikari began to draw in a sharp intake of breath. Shizuo could feel her fingertips on his spine, just as she could his. Vocal chords swelled and hummed, something that resonated in both him and her, all the while her chest heaved and a beat was skipped. A single, pure note fled her mouth and became a string of words – it was a lullaby just for him, because he loved it when she sang.
Criticism and reviews are welcomes and greatly appreciated. I love hearing what you guys think, and what you think I could improve on.
This story was actually going to be a few chapters long, but I found it too hard to settle on an idea, so I condensed the themes into this one shot. If you liked it, keep in touch for any following fics regarding this pairing or others regarding the characters of 'Durarara!'. A sort of sequel has been uploaded about this same pairing already, titled 'Unspoken'.
Thanks so much for reading :)