Chapter 9: The Heart that Hardly Beats
Kazuya impatiently and absently tapped his foot against the tiled floor of the university's main hall as he frowned down at his phone. He considered texting Kuri again in an attempt to encourage him to pick up the pace, but decided against it. He wasn't exactly in any sort of rush, but would prefer to put his plan into action sooner rather than later. He needed to know the date that Kuri next planned to rent Ruka so he could form a further strategy in ensuring that he and Mizuhara's secret stayed as such. He didn't exactly distrust Ruka per say, but whoever said a little insurance was a bad idea?
A minor commotion drew his attention away from his phone as he noted several students, mostly males, seemed to be crowded around one of the halls that led further into the main building. He could overhear a few of their comments overriding the general din of noise that stood out to him.
"Man, that girl is cute as hell."
"You think she's a professor's daughter or something?"
"She looks kind of like this one vtuber I watch, like she just fell out of the screen or something."
Unable to suppress his curiosity any further, Kazuya angled his head just enough to be able to see past the crowds and peek at who exactly was getting all this attention. He regretted that choice immediately.
"Shit! Ruka?!" he hissed under his breath, sidling against the pillar he'd been leaning on to stay out of view. What was she doing at his university? Had Kuri asked her to come? Wasn't there some sort of rule against bringing rentals to university campuses and workplaces? She still appeared to be dressed in her high school uniform, so she stood out like a mascot on a train car.
A pair of guys approached her and tried to strike up a conversation, which she quickly turned down with a smile and dismissive gesture. Were they trying to hit on her? While she was dressed like a JK? Where the hell was their shame, or their self-respect? Unfortunately, because Kazuya's sins were heavy, the heavens decided to bestow upon him nothing but pain when right at that moment Ruka's eyes happened to meet his own. Her eyes shone as she smiled with equal energy, waving to him in what could generously be considered an exaggerated manner.
"Hey Kazuya!" she sang as she ran over to meet him, looking all the while like a kid on Christmas morning. He returned her greeting with far less enthusiasm.
"Ruka, what are you doing here?" exasperation with his luck was obvious in his tone.
"You know, I heard it about this, but I never thought that just anybody could walk onto a collage campus!" She pointedly ignored his question, taking in the view. "I can pass for a collage girl, don't you think?" She looked at him expectantly.
Kazuya looked her up and down, more for effect than anything before looking her in the eye. "Dressed like that? You look like you got lost on your way to third period math."
Ruka pulled on the lapels of her jacket, turning her nose up and closing her eyes for added sass. "Just think of it as cosplay." she replied before her smile returned. Meanwhile, Kazuya's mind was busy analyzing his current predicament, knowing that Kuri could be on his way any moment and that him seeing the two of them together would require one hell of a crazy explanation to try and get out of.
"I actually came here today to see you, Kazuya." Ruka said finally answering his earlier question, filling Kazuya with confusion. To see him? What would she want with him? Hadn't they sorted everything out with their last hectic encounter? His phone vibrated in his hand and he looked down only to noticed that Kuri messaged him to say he'd be arriving in about a minute.
The timing couldn't have been any worse! Why him!? What did he do to deserve this? Putting his hand on Ruka shoulder he began leading her towards an offshoot corridor full of classrooms that he could hopefully use to buy some time and come up with an escape plan. "This way." was all the explanation he gave her, not that she seemed to mind. He failed to noticed Kuri just barely catching a glimpse of him as he headed down the hallway, prompting him to silently follow.
After shutting the door to an empty classroom they were now in, Kazuya turned to Ruka. "You know, it'd be a lot easier to keep our secrets to ourselves if you'd just done this somewhere we wouldn't be out in the open." Ruka didn't answer, but rather held her arms out to him, her expression serious.
"I want you to hug me."
Kazuya could almost feel the stroke building in his brain at that comment. "This really isn't the time to be messing around. Plus, I'm not all that interested in going on the registry, thank you very much."
Ruka shook her head, expression unmoving. "I'm not joking." Her resolve was clear, and her arms stayed where they were. "79 points...just a little more to be sure." she added under her breath. Before Kazuya could question what any of that meant, he heard a familiar voice just outside.
"Hey Kazuya, are you in there?" Kuri! Had he somehow seen him? Was he really that off his game? Taking the only reasonable action in this terrible situation, he called his suit and cloaked himself, dragging Ruka to the front of the class quickly and hiding them both behind the lectures' desk. Just as the two were out of sight the door opened quietly and Kuri stepped in.
"Man, I must be losing my mind. I could've sworn I heard Kazuya voice coming from here. Maybe he's just further down the hall." Kazuya's attention was drawn to Ruka who was sat between his legs with her back to him. She gently moved his still invisible hand from her shoulder and wrapped it around her midsection, pressing down on the back of his hand to keep it in place as she took out her phone. Kazuya couldn't risk making too much movement or speaking, so he just silently fumed. Why was she so dead set on a damn hug? She'd seemed to want to avoid him after the whole stairs' debacle. And was this really the time to be messing with her phone? He was invisible, so at least he couldn't be caught, but her? How would she explain herself to Kuri?
The sound of retreating footsteps made Kazuya breathe a small sigh of relief, before he was interrupted by a beeping tone from Ruka's phone. It might not have been all that loud, but in the silence of this room it might as well have been a bomb going off. "I knew it!" Ruka whispered to herself as Kazuya whipped his head around to look towards the door. Shut. Kuri must've left just before her phone went off. Thank the Lord of Luck for small mercies. Sighing again, he removed his arm from around her, leaned in next to Ruka's ear and quietly gave her the game plan.
"I'll go for the door and make sure the coast is clear. Then, you need to get out of here. I think you've caused enough trouble for one day." Ruka seemed to squirm, probably out of a sense of shame for causing such a commotion. "I'm...sorry." she apologized; her voice small. Whatever agitation Kazuya might have felt at that moment faded. Ruka wasn't a bad kid, she was just that.
A kid. A bit fiery, and maybe a touch too impulsive, but how many kids her age weren't? A step on his left made him freeze up.
"Ruka? What are you doing here?"
Kuri hadn't left at all. The Lord of Luck was not in a good mood today after all. He'd certainly pay for that when Kazuya broke into heaven head first and starting kicking ass. Thankful still invisible, he remained still and silent, not risking anything. Ruka stared up at Kuri, silent for a few moments before standing and brushing herself off. She looked to where she knew Kazuya was still sat before turning to fully face Kuri. Bowing, she addressed him.
"Kuribayashi, thank you for renting me previously. While I've enjoyed the time we've spent together, I think that it would be for the best if you did not rent me going forward."
Kuri's face was a mix of heartbroken and defeated. He tried to ask why, that if he had done something wrong or had broken some sort of rule he'd apologize! Ruka assured him that wasn't the case, but it did little to ease his sadness. "You really were the ideal customer Kuribayashi, but I will not be able to be your girlfriend in the future. I'm sorry."
With the wind knocked completely out of Kuri's sails, he hung his head and somberly walked out of the classroom, not even bothering to close the door behind him. Ruka's crouched down and went to place her hand where she'd last known Kazuya to be, but felt nothing but air. The subtle sound of the door closing was her only clue that he had left as well.
As Kazuya exited a washroom he'd used to decloak inconspicuously, he could only wonder what the hell all of that had been about. Why would Ruka cut Kuri off like that? And why would she choose do it in front of him? He still couldn't wrap his mind around her determination for him to hug her, and what in the world she could have been doing with her phone that was so important at the time.
"She said 'I knew it'. Knew what?" he wondered aloud, completely stumped. There was on thing he was sure of.
Mizuhara needed to know.
/~/
"Wait, so she just told him to stop renting her? Just like that?" Mizuhara's confusion came through her intercom loud and clear as Kazuya told her the whole sordid affair. He confirmed that was the case, and the two of them contemplated further in silence.
"Kuri seemed pretty torn up, he hasn't responded to any of my messages yet."
"There's no way he'd be in a good mood." Mizuhara said sympathetically. "She may not have been his real girlfriend, but being rejected by a rental like that out of the blue can't feel good."
Kazuya could understand that. The only good thing was that at least Kuri didn't know he knew about Ruka being a rental. That would have made everything ten times worse and confusing. "The chances of him renting another girlfriend are pretty low, and since Ruka won't be talking to him anymore, it looks like our secret is safe again." The two of them were quiet again, until Kazuya spoke up.
"There was something...off about her."
"Off? What do you mean?"
"It's just...she seemed like she had prepared herself for something. Like she'd been trying to figure something out and everything sort of fell into place."
Mizuhara paused. "What do you think she was trying to do?"
Kazuya sighed in frustration, rubbing his eyes with his palms. "Trust me, the moment I get a single clue, you'll be the first and last person I tell." Neither of them had a clue as to what she could have been doing with her phone, or what it had to do with hugging him. The past few days' worth of drama were starting to take their toll on him, and he could fell himself hurtling towards the edge of his patience.
"We might have gotten lucky this time, but we can't be sure something like this won't happen again. I'm not sure if anything is worth the risk of us keeping this up."
"End this now, before it gets any worse."
"What do you mean?" Chizuru asked, sounding a little unsure.
"I mean, maybe it's for the best if I stopped renting you, and we just tell our families we broke up." There was a tightness in his throat that was gone so quickly he almost didn't notice it. A singular moment of numbness came and went, leaving him blinking in confusion. What was that about?
"There you go. Was that so hard?"
"Wait." Mizuhara's voice came through the speaker, clearer than before. "Just hold on."
Kazuya was confused. Mizuhara had always been a rather straightforward thinker. A speedbump like this should put into perspective how perilous it really was to keep going with this 'relationship'.
"Mizuhara?" "You're wasting your time. This could all be over with a single conversation."
"I'm just saying, that isn't really something you should decide on so quickly..." she trailed off, and Kazuya was at a loss for words. The scrape of a footstep to his right made him turn his head, and the last person he could have possibly wanted around at this very moment was right at the top of the stairs.
"Ruka?!" he couldn't help but exclaim. How in the hell did she find out where he lived?! There was no way she could have followed him; he couldn't remember the last time he'd come home from university not suited up and invisible. "Why are you here?" He could hear pounding footsteps from inside Mizuhara's apartment, and she was obviously just on the other side of her door listening in.
"Kuribayashi told me you lived here when we passed by on a date once." She still sounded just as serious as she had back in that classroom. Her eyes narrowed and she looked towards the door he was in front of, taking a step closer. "That voice, that was Chizuru, wasn't it?" There was no reason to deny it, so Kazuya held his tongue. She took another step. "So, you two are neighbors on top of everything else?" Again, he had no rebuttal. Ruka looked down, she shoulders sagging ever so slightly.
"Why...why are you two so close?" Close? What was she talking about?
Another step, she looked him straight in the eye, unflinching from only a few paces away. "You're just 'renting' her, right? You pay her, go on a date and leave! That's all there is, right?!" Her volume steadily grew, and Kazuya attempted to calm her to no avail. She shook her head, reached into her pocket and retrieved her phone. After fiddling around with it for a moment, she turned it to face Kazuya, displaying that it was currently recording.
"I, Ruka Sarashina, promise to keep your rental relationship a secret on the condition that you swear to go out with me." Stunned, Kazuya was rooted to the spot as Ruka paused the recording. His initial response wasn't as eloquent as he would have liked.
"Huh?" Quick as he could, he gathered his wits and pushed for answers. "Where did that come from? Go out with you? We barely know each other!" Ruka shook her head, budging neither in thought or body.
"You're the first person to get over 90 points." she practically whispered. 90 points? Points in what?! Another step. "Kazuya, I know I like you. All this time, I've been looking for someone like you. All the stories I'd read, the clips on social media of you saving people, that video of you on that ferry. All of it, it led me here." She laid a hand on her chest, just over her heart. "I know I'm right to feel this way." She continued, as if she'd lose the nerve to continue if she stopped now. "The way you treat Chizuru, even if she's a rental, shows me you'd treat a real girlfriend even better!"
The naked praise was a bit much for Kazuya, and he could feel his face heat up despite his wishes. "The way I treat her? I'm just her client! There's nothing else between us, I just..." One final step, and Ruka was practically chest-to-chest with him, as he unconsciously half stepped backwards and bumped against the wall.
"Right! You're just a client! Then why not go out with me for real?" she said half franticly.
"It's not that simp-" She cut him off.
"Of course it is! She's just a rental, so what possible problem could there be?" Kazuya was at a loss. She knew some of the story of their fake relationship, but it wasn't up to him to tell her any more. The *click* of a turning lock made them both look to the side, as Mizuhara emerged from her apartment, looking neutral in spite of the chaos.
"Mizuhara? Are you sure you should be out here?" he asked. She shrugged, hands in her hoodie pockets.
"She already figured us out. Plus, I can't just leave you out here. This is our problem, after all." The sentiment meant a lot, and Kazuya could already feel some of the built-up stress leaving him. Ruka fixed her eyes on Mizuhara, saying nothing but still making her opinion known with just her glare.
"Ruka, you do understand what you're saying, right? Kazuya and me may be client and rental, but it's more complicated than that. If you start throwing out random confessions like that, you'll just be causing problems for all of us." Chizuru's iron attitude shone through, and she easily broke the situation down without revealing anything too specific. She really had a way with words.
Unfortunately, Ruka was unfazed. "It isn't random." she said with more contempt than either of the older pair expected. "I know how I feel about him." Ruka cocked an eyebrow at her, looking for all the world like a poker player with two aces in her hand and two on the table. "Do you?"
Mizuhara back peddled, thrown for a loop at both the confidence and the direct nature of the question. "E-excuse you?" She gathered herself quickly, refusing to be distracted. "Feelings have nothing to do with this. What the two of us have is a purely professional, if a bit complex, agreement between adults. That's all." Ruka didn't seem to fully buy the idea, crossing her arms and looking unimpressed.
"If that's all it is, then you wouldn't have a problem with the two of dating, would you? I mean, as a rental, you shouldn't be involved with a client as much as you are. Meeting a client's family is strictly prohibited, no matter the agency!" The on-point accusation made the pair stutter, unable to counter the truth of their situation properly.
"Hold on, lets calm down." Kazuya tried to deescalate the situation before it got any further out of hand. "If somebody were to see us out here..." he looked to Mizuhara, who matched his look of unease.
"That's true..." With a nod, Kazuya opened the door to his apartment and ushered Chizuru inside, much to Ruka's dismay.
"Unbelievable..." Ruka fumed as she stood in the doorway. The two looked back, confused by the reaction. "You've even been in his apartment?!" she said accusatorily, pointing at the pair. "If you were really just a rental, you'd at least hesitate to enter a client's home! You didn't even think twice! That shows you've been here before!" The pair were flabbergasted. She really was Sato's kid if she picked up on hints that subtle! Kazuya attempted to ease Ruka's misunderstanding by telling her the truth of the night Mizuhara helped him back to his room after he could barely move.
"It was all above board. She helped me in and left. That's it." The confidence in Kazuya's tone was just enough to relax Ruka, if just a bit. When they all settled down at his small table near the back door, Ruka insisted on sitting next to Kazuya. She may not have been touching him, but the intention was clear. Considering Ruka didn't seem to be in the mood to negotiate, Kazuya had his doubts there was much either of them could say to sway her.
"Give us five minutes." Mizuhara finally said after a few tense moments of silence. "Let me and Kazuya talk for five minutes while you wait outside."
"Why should I? Who knows what you could get up to without me here." Ruka's incredulity couldn't be ignored. Mizuhara quickly denied the allegations, insisting the two of them would do no such thing. When Ruka turned to look at Kazuya, he gave her a reassuring smile.
"Trust me. We've never gotten up to anything and we aren't starting now." Ruka relented reluctantly, stepping out of the apartment to give the pair the chance to talk in private.
Now came the difficult part. Trying to come up with a plan to placate Ruka. What could they tell her? What could possibly convince her this was the wrong decision?
"Before we get started, can I ask you something?" Mizuhara spoke up, and when Kazuya nodded, she proceeded. "Do you...like Ruka at all?" The out-of-pocket nature of the question threw Kazuya for a loop, so much so that he was stunned silent for a few moments. When he responded, it was a clear negative.
"Of course not! I barely know her, plus she's still in high school! Not to mention her dads a cop and would slap the cuffs on any guy that tried something on his daughter." There were more reasons, like how she didn't exactly endear herself by trying to soft blackmail him into a relationship. She was young, but something like that should seem off even to her. "I mean, sure she's the first girl that's told me she likes me, but I don't think a relationship is the right choice here."
Chizuru agreed, shaking her head solemnly. "You're right. Relationships need to be built on mutual trust and affection. Strongarming someone like that is a sure-fire way to turn them off you fast. It's nothing like renting, so being casual about it is out of the question." There was a certain tension to her words, but her expression seemed even, so Kazuya refrained from asking further.
Mizuhara crossed her arms and closed her eyes, thinking deeply. "What other options do we have though? She has us pinned, and without any leverage of our own I don't know what we've got on our side." Kazuya reflected on her words, and was suddenly struck with inspiration! It wasn't exactly the nicest way of going about things, but desperate times called for desperate measures.
"Mizuhara!" he announced, causing her to jump a little. She looked at him, more than willing to hear him out. "I've got an idea." Without waiting for a response, he told her his plan, giving as much detail as he could. She seemed receptive, and didn't have any serious objections.
"Are you sure that'll work? Doesn't it seem a bit...?"
"Mean?" he offered.
"I was going to say manipulative, but that works too."
Kazuya shrugged, not surprised by the summation. "Hey, all's fair in love and war. Anyway, she started it. I'm not doing anything more than she is. Plus, it's more of a bluff if anything. Her old man would be plenty upset if he knew what was going on, and I don't think I really have the heart to drop that on her." Mizuhara considered his words and hummed in agreement. At that the pair called Ruka back into the room. She took her place right next to Kazuya again, but she could sense something was different from before.
They might have thought they had a plan, but she wasn't planning on budging on her feelings anytime soon.
"Hey Ruka, can I ask you something?" Kazuya asked, his smile had a slight edge to it, but Ruka failed to notice.
The poor girl. "What?" she answered, innocently enough.
"Does Sato happen to know about you being a rental girlfriend?" Ruka instantly went still, the colour draining from her face. Her whole body froze, and despite her condition she felt her heart rate jump.
"Wh-what do you..."
"I mean," Mizuhara cut in. "I know if my dad found out I was doing something like this while still in high school he'd ground me until I was thirty." Ruka's eyes darted between the two of them, worry sitting like a lead weight in her stomach. She could already hear her father's voice, disappointment mixed with paternal worry as he reprimanded her for doing a job she knew had some sketchy connections behind the scenes. She felt tears well up in her eyes, and they silently started to trail down her cheeks as her breath hitched.
"I-" she hiccupped as she tried to wipe her tears away. "I'm sorry...I just didn't know what else to do. I just wanted to tell you how I feel and...and I knew I didn't stand a chance without doing something like this..."
The older pair were suddenly on the backfoot, eyes wide as they did their best to calm the younger girl down, apologizing for the harsh tactic. Kazuya offered her some tissues and she dried her eyes, her breathing evening out. They had leaned on her a little strong, especially since she was still a kid all things considered.
"Sorry for scaring you like that." Kazuya apologized again.
Ruka let out a melancholic exhale. "It's fine. I kind of deserved it." Neither Mizuhara or Kazuya could bring themselves to denying that. Pulling her legs up against her chest, Ruka rested her forehead on her knees, breathing quietly. Kazuya decided to proceed with his plan, despite the slight bump in the road.
"You know Ruka, you shouldn't feel like you have to rush into a relationship like this. I mean, you're still young, not that being young means you're immature or anything!" he quickly added when he noticed her expression twist. "I just mean, you should take this sort of thing slow. You've got years to figure out how you really feel, years to grow up and change." He gently laid his hand on her shoulder, to which she raised her head and looked at him, her eyes still rimmed with red. "Don't let all those shojo manga and TV shows shape how you look at love. It's complicated and messy, and doesn't always make sense. Not that I'm an expert or anything." He had the sense of self to admit that at the very least.
Mizuhara spoke up as well, her tone kind. "He's right you know. I may not know how you feel, but what I can say is that you can't force love. You have to let it happen on its own, let another person feel how they're going to feel. If they like you back, that's great. If they don't...you just have to get back up and keep moving."
The three of them sat in a less tense silence for a few moments, Ruka quietly considering their words. Reflecting on the choice she'd made when she'd decided to come out to Kazuya's apartment. It was a little reckless, and a fair bit out of line if she thought more on it. It wasn't exactly fair to hold something over their heads when she had something to hide as well. She wouldn't deny how she felt however, she knew she was right on that.
"Ruka, how do you think a relationship should start?" The question from Kazuya surprised her, and she considered it for a few moments.
"I guess...when two people like each other and want to try dating?" Was he just asking this to see if she knew what relationships were? Where was he going with this? He continued.
"What do you think most people are before they start dating? Or rather, what should they be before they date?" Ruka paused again, thinking it over.
"I guess before you become a couple, you should know a bit more about each other..." she mulled it over further before her eyes lit up. "Friends! You should be friends first!"
Kazuya smiled. "Exactly. If you're friends before you decide to start dating, you already have a great foundation to build off. Even if it doesn't work out, a solid friendship will last." Ruka quickly put together why Kazuya was saying all of this.
"So, you think we should be friends first, before thinking about any sort of relationship? Is that it?"
"I'm not about to promise anything more, but being friends is a pretty decent middle ground, wouldn't you say?" Ruka might not have gotten exactly what she wanted when she arrived, but she was one step closer than she otherwise was. She nodded enthusiastically; her smile brighter than the evening light streaming through the blinds behind them.
"Okay! Friends it is! For now, at least." She smirked at Mizuhara, a glint in her eye before facing Kazuya again. "That doesn't mean I'm giving up though! I'll prove that I can be the perfect girlfriend, just you wait and see!"
/-/
A week or so had passed since the arrangement made with Ruka, and matters had progressed rather smoothly all things considered. Her feelings for him were still present, obviously so, but in a subdued manner. She messaged him often but was aware enough to not bombard him with texts and calls at all hours. In fact, they were planning to hang out later on this very day.
Unfortunately, the underbelly of the city didn't care much for his plans.
"Goddamnit." he seethed to himself as he leapt across another rooftop, keeping an eye on the speeding car as it screeched around another corner, a few police cruisers in pursuit. These assholes had chosen now of all times to go for a joyride and test his patience.
Well, they'd chosen the exact wrong time for that.
As he neared the end of the current stretch of roofs, he stopped at the edge and looked down at the fancy sports car as its driver disregarded everyone who had dared to be out on the road at the same time as him. Time slowed as Keikai predicted the vehicles path, his legs tensing as he prepared to act. His plan wasn't subtle in any way, but sometimes bluntness had an unpredictable quality of its own.
Plus, it helped that people so rarely looked up.
The horrible screech of metal meeting metal filled the air as he slammed down on the front end of the car, all its carried momentum halted in a split second of consequence. Since whoever was inside hadn't flown through the windshield, they'd at least had the sense to wear seatbelts. A pleasant surprise, since he wouldn't have envied whatever poor sap would have to scrap them off the pavement were that the case.
Still a far better result than even a single innocent person left injured or dead. Not on his watch.
He separated himself from the wreckage, not very concerned considering the entire front end of what used to be a rather expensive car looked more like a failed modern art sculpture. The sound of sirens surrounded him as the flashing red lights bathed the scene, officers approaching the vehicle to pull the passengers out. A pair of young men, early twenties at the latest, banged up for sure but better than they would have been if they'd pancaked into a brick wall.
"I'm gonna sue your ass!" the driver had the nerve to yell at him as blood slowly dripped down his face from a minor forehead wound. The police weren't exactly gentle as they cuffed him, which was nice of them. "That car's worth more than your whole family!"
Keikai stopped in his tracks, rather incensed by the words. He slowly turned to face the obnoxious worm, laid out on his stomach with his arms restrained as his face twisted in pain. His featureless mask burned a hole into the bastard's soul as he walked up to him, crouching down so he could talk without needing to raise his voice. The officers did nothing to stop him as he placed a hand on the petty criminal's head, grabbed a fistful of hair and tugged his head up. He gasped in pain and his eyes widened in fear as Keikai pressed the cold, unflinching metal of his forehead against him.
"Tell it to someone who cares." he hissed as he loosened his grip on the ungrateful swine to talk to the police. They thanked him, which he brushed off and turned back onto them, thanking them for taking care of matters that he couldn't. Leaving without a second glance he vanished, determined not to be late for his agreed hang out. Reappearing in an alley a block or so away from the meeting place he finished the trek in relative peace.
"At the first sign of trouble, you should cut this little meeting short."
Kazuya sighed and resisted the urge to roll his eyes. "Don't be like that." he voiced internally. "Stopping something high profile like that gets the word out. Criminals will be too busy looking over their shoulder to pull anything."
"Even still, constant vigilance is crucial. We can't risk getting complacent."
"Yeah, yeah." he mumbled to himself, stuffing his hands in his pockets as he continued on his way. Something about that last statement seemed a little strange, but he shrugged it off. Turning the corner, he immediately spotted Ruka leaned against a wall looking down at her phone with a grin. He approached her, all the while noticing the number of guys that seemed to be eyeing her up. He'd be lying if he said he didn't get it, but the amount of attention she drew was something else. It was like she was an idol just out on the street, not a high school girl just minding her own business. As he got closer, she looked up and smiled in a way that made her look all the more stunning, bringing her phone up without a word for him to see what she'd been watching. He gave it a glance, not very surprised at the content.
Watching himself slam down onto the hood of a speeding car from an outside perspective was odd, but not unexpected.
"That spread fast." was all he could think of to respond with. Social media was a crazy thing, that had barely happened ten minutes ago and the clip already had close to two hundred thousand views, and it was probably only one of several.
"It's the hottest news of the day! I think there's a few edits of it already." Before she could search for them Kazuya placed his hand on her phone and gentle lowered it, unable to help smiling at her enthusiasm.
"As much as I'd love seeing something I already did recycled a thousand different ways set to whatever song people love this week, we have a schedule to keep, don't we?" Ruka laughed a little embarrassedly, easing down her excitement as she pushed some loose hair behind her ear. The two travelled in a comfortable silence free from awkwardness or the need to fill the air.
"This pop-up café has been all my friends at school have been talking about!" Ruka announced as they stood outside the aforementioned business. "Want to see the pictures they took? Their deserts look so good, I almost feel bad about eating them!" Ruka talked a mile a minute, her enthusiasm not exactly infectious but admirable. The pair were seated quickly thanks to a reservation, and Kazuya's brain was nearly overloaded with all the decor and art that covered every square inch of the already rather small space. He vaguely recognised the theme as that of a currently popular anime series about a group of high school girls who ran a restaurant by day, but moonlighted as hunters who fought demons invisible to normal people. He'd never taken the time to watch it, but it was unavoidable online since its second season started airing. Looking down at the menu he first thing he noticed was the prices, which made him grimace.
For nineteen hundred yen that hamburg steak better be the work of a Michelin star chef or he was going to throw a fit. On the other hand, Ruka gushed over the menu, mentioning her favourite characters and how amazing the food looked just in picture form. Kazuya couldn't help but smile, seeing her so excited. They placed their orders with a server who thankfully seemed to be in genuinely high spirits, rather than faking it for their sakes.
Must've been a big fan of the show.
The food was actually quite good, contrary to the bad rap he'd heard regarding themed cafes having poor quality options and the whole point just being for merch sales. Kazuya eschewed dessert, insisting to Ruka that he didn't have a big enough sweet tooth at the moment to justify an entire parfait or milkshake. She did however offer him some of her own dessert, a rather extravagant cake with more layers than he could count on a single hand and a sugar rainbow ornament which she'd yet to touch. The gesture on her part seemed rather embarrassing, as her red toned cheeks betrayed her immediately. Kazuya accepted the offered sweet, which delighted Ruka to no end.
"This is fun, don't you think?" she asked in a more sedate voice a few moments later. Kazuya affirmed the thought. He genuinely enjoyed himself spending time with Ruka, her presence almost calming in a way without any of the urgency she'd been displaying that day she'd dropped in on him and Mizuhara.
"The perfect place for a date, wouldn't you say?" she added slyly with a smile.
Kazuya shook his head at the comment and chuckled. "You need to work on that subtly of yours, it's severely lacking."
"Am I wrong though?"
"No, just as blunt as-"
"A certain someone stopping a speeding car by dropping fifteen stories straight onto its hood?"
Kazuya's expression soured and Ruka laughed quietly, trying and failing to cover her mouth as he shoulders rose and fell. "What you lack in subtly you more than make up for in sassiness." he rebutted as the two of them rose from their table to leave, Kazuya taking out his wallet and heading to the counter to pay.
Ruka gasped mockingly as she followed him. "Calling a woman sassy isn't very gentlemanly of you." He turned and glanced at her, an intrusive thought entering his mind making him involuntarily smile.
"Un-gentlemanly, huh? Oh, allow me to show you just how un-gentlemanly I can be." He opened his wallet and took out just enough money to pay for his portion of the meal before handing it to the cashier. He glanced over his shoulder at Ruka as he did, the subtle beginnings of worry creeping in beneath her seemingly cocky expression. He turned back and winked at the worker behind the register, receiving a subtle smile in return, the young man in on his joke. Turning he walked straight past Ruka, whose eyes were glued to his face, quickly slipping the correct amount of money to pay for her half into her purse as he passed.
Superhuman reflexes were good for more than just saving lives and stopping crimes.
He exited and waited outside, leaned against a pillar with his arms crossed as he watched the show. Ruka gaped at him through the glass for a few more moments before pouting and stomping up to the register. Reaching into her purse he could see her freeze up and slowly remove the bills, staring down at them as if they were of alien origin. Her head whipped around so fast Kazuya swore he heard it through the glass. Her wide eyes narrowed and the corners of her mouth dropped. Kazuya waved at her and smiled, unable to help himself. She quickly paid and stormed out of the café, marched right up to and glared up at him with the same ice-cold stare he'd seen when trying to convince her to keep his rental secret.
"Now something like that," he pointed back at the restaurant "would be un-gentlemanly."
Ruka held the look a little longer before jabbing him in the stomach, the act hurting herself more than him as her finger uncomfortably bent when colliding with his admittedly toned abdominals. She pulled back with a small noise of discomfort as Kazuya gently held the damaged digit.
"Sorry." he apologized quietly, both for the not so kind prank as well as the minor pain he'd sort of been responsible for. Ruka shook her head and let out a small laugh.
"Don't apologize. That was...actually kind of funny." She laughed a little more but was quick to push a finger against his chest in feigned warning. "It wasn't nice though! You better not pull something like that again, mister!" Ruka's grin showed she wasn't fully serious, but Kazuya couldn't resist.
"If it gets reactions like that, don't bet on it."
"Hey!" Ruka whined as he laughed, the two walking off a little closer than they'd been before.
A/N : Sorry this took incredibly long to put together, I thought I'd have the time but life just got a grip on me and refused to let go. The next bit should be releasing faster though, so thanks for putting up with the wild uploads so far! As always, if you've got something to say feel free to post a review!