Stupid Brain

Nitsuki was screwed. Utterly, thoroughly screwed.

She had been hoping that Tachibana would be his usual, gullible, easy-going self. That he would have bought her half-assed lie about getting into minimalism. But no; he had to go and be all perceptive.

She didn’t know what was worse—the fact that he had seen through her, or the fact that he had seen the real her. The her that was vulnerable. The her that was weak. The her that was… terrified.

Before he left to go grab some things, Nitsuki had tried to brush off Tachibana's concerns and convince him that she was okay, but he wouldn’t listen—of course not, she had just joked about lying to him, why would he?

Now he was going to actually take care of her—as in, stay by her side, live in this house, and watch over her.

She was doomed.

The worst part? It didn't even have to be this way. When he'd asked her whether or not was it okay to stay with her, she'd been so flustered that she had actually said yes! All she needed to do was say she wasn't comfortable with it, and he would've probably backed off.

But no. Her stupid female monkey brain had to kick in at the worst possible time, and now she was in the middle of waiting for her new live-in babysitter to come back.

Don't you mean potential boyfriend~?

"Shut the hell up brain," Nitsuki hissed under her breath. "I already told you that's not happening. I'm not ruining his life. He's too good of a guy for someone like me to be involved with."

It's not like you have a choice~! You're stuck with him now~

She sighed loudly as she took the last bite of her dinner. It had taken her a lot longer to eat than she'd expected. Tachibana had made her promise to finish the entire thing before she did anything else.

She set the empty bowl on the nightstand and then glanced around. She felt weird, sitting around and doing nothing while there were still dirty dishes out in the kitchen. She knew Tachibana had said he would clean them later when he returned, but the guilt was too much.

"I might as well take care of it."

She stood up carefully. The dizziness from earlier hadn't returned once her blood sugars had stabilized, and her legs were no longer wobbly, but she still took it slow—just in case.

She made her way out of her bedroom and down the hallway to the kitchen. Once there, she began to gather up the dirty dishes and utensils that were scattered around. There wasn't too much considering that Tachibana had only made himself a quick meal for himself and her, so it didn't take long to get everything in order.

She filled the sink with warm, soapy water and started cleaning.

As she scrubbed each plate and pot, she found herself lost in thought. Everything had happened so fast. She hadn't expected things to turn out like this.

"Taking care of me. What the hell did I do to deserve this?"

You almost killed yourself.

"Fair point, brain," she mused, her hands slowing as she stared out the window. "But why? I just… don't get it. I'm not worth it."

You are to him.

"…" She felt her face heat up at that thought. She shook her head vigorously and focused on the task at hand, trying to ignore her brain's words.

He cares about you.

"Shush!"

He likes you.

"Shhh!"

You know he does.

"S-sh-shut up!" she stammered out loud, her cheeks burning. Why was her stupid brain acting like it had a mind of its own right now?

"Damn it all. Talking to myself too now. I really have gone crazy."

Her lips pursed tightly as she finished cleaning the dishes. There was still a lot of time until Tachibana would be back considering the drive time. He'd mentioned getting groceries too, but considering the time, they were likely going to be getting those tomorrow.

She froze the moment she thought of going grocery shopping together with him. Like a couple.

She groaned and buried her face in her hands, wishing the floor would open up and swallow her whole.

"Damn it. Damn it. Damn it."

This wouldn't do. Aside from her embarrassment, what would the other members of Hoshimura think about this situation? They probably weren't going to look at it very kindly, even if it was just two friends living together. And if somehow things ever did become romantic between them—which they absolutely would not—then just how much of a shitstorm would that cause?

She could imagine it now—the looks of disgust and the whispers behind their backs. Inoue would have a field day, and no doubt her and her cronies would be spreading rumors. Tachibana might get off lighter just because of how well-respected his grandfather was, but he would still get hit. The old man was popular and influential in town, but not to the extent where he could single-handedly change everyone's mind.

Nitsuki sighed and slumped back against the counter, staring up at the ceiling. Maybe she should just use some of this time to view ahead into the future and see just what would happen. She could prevent anything too bad from happening if she planned their grocery trip ahead of time.

A part of her was worried she was getting addicted to her newfound ability, but considering the circumstances, it was a necessary evil.

"Alright, show me our future," she muttered to herself. "What happens if we go to the grocery store tomorrow?"

She closed her eyes and tried to concentrate on the vision of them buying food. It took a bit of effort, but after a few seconds, the sensation of her consciousness being pulled forward washed over her.

***

A sense of weightlessness surrounded Nitsuki as she floated… somewhere. She was warm too for some reason.

She opened her eyes to see if she was in the grocery store, but instead, she was floating amongst the weird starscape she had met Daimon in before: the Crossroads.

"Back again, I see."

She looked up to find Daimon sitting on one of the nearby 'stars', reading a book. He looked about the same as the last time she saw him, though there was an oddly infuriating smirk beneath his beard.

"D*gimon, that you?! Where the hell did you run off to last time? You didn't even give a proper goodbye before you plopped me back home."

"It's good to see you too. As for why I did that though?" He shrugged. "You're a smart girl. I figured you could handle the rest of the things yourself."

"Handle myself? What do you take me for? A normal, stable, and adequately functional member of society?"

"Sort of? Well, aside from the entire trying to kill yourself bit, your crippling social anxiety, and the fact you're in denial about your feelings. I'd say you're doing alright."

"…" She wanted so badly to retort, but the bastard had her there. Circumstances aside, she had been doing her best to keep her head above water and be a decent person before all of this.

"Anyways, what are you doing here now?" she questioned. "Don't tell me I screwed up already."

"No, no. Just keeping an eye out to see how things are going. By the way, I'm glad you told Tachibana. That was the first big step to healing."

She frowned at his choice of words. "Damn voyeur. And what do you mean by healing?"

"Yes, healing. I don't think I have to explain too much. Oh, and as a plus, by you doing that, it just about guaranteed he'll never leave your side. He's a loyal and caring one. You've got a keeper on your hands."

She flushed, her heart skipping a beat. "I-it's not like that! He's just my friend, and I—"

Daimon's grin turned into an infuriatingly knowing smile. "Mhm, Miss Denial. Keep telling yourself that." He hopped off the star and onto the invisible floor, his cane tapping against its surface. "Do you want some advice?"

Nitsuki blinked. "Advice?"

"I can give you a guideline to follow if you want—guarantee a happy ending."

"…" She hesitated. "That sounds an awful lot like cheating. Isn't that against some cosmic rules or something?"

The old man chuckled. "Not particularly. You already have your gift. I'm just giving you a little help, that's all."

"And why exactly would you be doing that, huh?" She asked suspiciously, raising an eyebrow. "What's in it for you?"

He stroked his beard as if thinking of an answer, then shrugged nonchalantly. "Nothing, really. I guess you could say that I just enjoy meddling in the affairs of others. I get bored rather easily."

"…So you're a voyeur and a meddler? Great combination there."

"Indeed. So, what'll it be? Do you want my advice?"

Nitsuki paused and thought about it before shaking her head. "No, I'll pass. I'd rather figure things out on my own. I'll take it from here… By the way, what book are you reading?" She gestured to the tome he was holding, curious. She couldn't make out the cover from where she was.

"Oh, this?" Daimon lifted the thick book. "Just a bit of light reading. It's called L*rd of the Rings. A friend of mine recently suggested it in our talks."

Nitsuki's eyebrows quirked upward. That was the name of the Western series her sister had liked so much. She was about to ask more, but he poofed the book… somewhere, and waved his cane around.

"Well, enough chitchat. You're here to see a vision about your grocery store date, right?"

"Yeah, that—Hold on, date?!" she spluttered. "The hell is your problem? I'm just trying to avoid trouble."

"Mhmmm. Sure, sure. Says the girl who'll be living together with her grocery trip 'partner' for the foreseeable future. I'm sure nothing will happen from that. Not at all."

Nitsuki's cheeks heated. "Shut up! I swear you're doing this on purpose."

"Maybe I am," he grinned, "but either way, I won't let you see the future this time."

She glared at him. "And what the hell is that supposed to mean?"

"Remember how I warned you about using your gift to avoid every single little bit of trouble? Well, I have the feeling if you do see the future, you'll opt to miss out on a great experience just to avoid a bit of discomfort. That'd be a shame."

Nitsuki gave him a dubious look.

He sighed and shook his head. "Look. Just trust me on this. It won't be a disaster or anything. Just a bit of embarrassment."

"Embarrassment?"

"Mhm. For both of you. But you'll live. Maybe even enjoy it. Besides, by doing this, the chances of an amazing ending for you two increases dramatically."

"Again with that. 'Happy ending', 'amazing ending', why do say that? My life isn't like those VNs Maya enjoyed playing."

"Hm? I'm not quite sure what a 'VN' is, but I can assure you, I'm not comparing you to one of those." Daimon's expression became serious. "You know, I didn't tell you this when we last spoke, but I have the power to see possible futures as well in a vague sense. And I'm telling you, there are a lot of futures in which you and Tachibana are very happy."

She paused at that, unsure how to reply. This damn geezer just said whatever the hell he wanted.

The old man yawned and stretched out his arms. "Well, I've kept you long enough. It's time for you to shoo and go back to the real world."

"Not so fast!" Nitsuki said, pointing a finger accusingly at him. "You're not getting away with dropping that on me and then—"

He clicked his tongue and twirled his cane, interrupting her. "You'd best figure out the sleeping arrangements before Tachibana returns. And do feel free to visit again. I'll try to be here in the Crossroads whenever you do."

"That's actually a good point, but… hey, wait a second. Why did you phrase that last part like I'm about to leave—"

Before she could finish her sentence, her stomach dropped, and the stars faded from her view.

***

Nitsuki gasped as she snapped back into her body. She stumbled backward, bumping into the kitchen counter as she tried to catch her breath. Her mind raced as her eyes darted around the dim room.

"Damn it. Daimon, you're an ass."

She took a few deep, calming breaths to steady herself. As soon as her heart rate slowed down, she glanced at the clock on the stove. Not much time had passed, which was good. She had a bit of time to think.

As much as she wanted to try look into the future, if Daimon had interrupted her, there was probably some sort of good reason for it—even if she didn't want to admit it. Plus, his comment about the sleeping arrangements was something she had been meaning to think about anyways.

She walked back into the hallway and started to take stock of her home.

It'd probably be best if she took out the futons. She had been too lazy to sell, donate, or trash them due to their size, so she still had quite a few stored in the spare closet. They'd be a lot more comfortable than the couch too, and if she was going to have Tachibana living here, he'd need at least a semi-permanent bed. It's not like they could just—

Nitsuki slapped her cheeks before the rogue thought could pop up, then started making her way toward the storage.

No. The last thing she needed now was to let her brain conjure up wild fantasies. She could already feel her cheeks burning and hear her heart pounding at the thought of what could happen if they… shared a bed.

"Focus. Futons, futons, futons," she muttered, trying to get her mind back on track.

"Don't you dare think about sleeping with him."