Familiar, Yet So Different

Nitsuki fiddled with the hem of her sweater as time ticked by in the shop. She was alone right now, sitting on a stool behind the counter as the late afternoon sun peaked in through the windows. Tachibana was currently in the back sorting through some new inventory that had come in over the weekend, and the old man was in his office taking care of some paperwork.

It was a typical, boring Monday afternoon that had been uneventful up until this point. Nothing unusual had happened, customers came and went like they always did, and everything was normal.

And yet… life just felt completely different.

Nitsuki's gaze drifted over to the backroom as her mind started to wander.

She recalled the memory of last evening, when Tachibana had momentarily dozed off while the two of them had cuddled in bed together. It hadn't been for very long, but technically speaking—really pushing the 'technically'—they had slept together.

The way his resting face had looked in the dark, illuminated only by the glow of the moon from her window, the warmth of his body, the rhythmic rise and fall of his chest… It was a memory that she'd never forget. Even the faint sounds of the outside world that she had heard as she lay there, nestled against him, would stay with her forever.

It was a moment that was so quiet, so peaceful, and yet, so incredibly powerful despite the mundanity of it. She had been in absolute bliss, the sort of high that was better than anything in the entire world.

Of course, she knew that eventually the pure euphoria she had felt would wear off, and the two of them would settle down into a comfortable routine. But she was okay with that. She had gotten used to treasuring each tiny little burst of happiness and validation in her life, so when the time eventually came, she was sure she'd be able to handle the shift. It always happened. Happiness never lasted, after all.

So then why did this time feel so different?

This morning she had woken up expecting to feel 'normal' again. Sure, she was happy, but she should've been at her baseline again. That's the way it had always been. No matter the high, the low, the event—life would continue on. Hell, not even her suicide attempt had disrupted things much.

Instead? She didn't feel 'normal’—she felt amazing. Like, really freaking great.

Her heart hadn't stopped pounding since she opened her eyes. In fact, it had gotten even faster once Tachibana woke up, wished her good morning in his groggy stupor, and gave her a quick peck on the lips as they fumbled through making breakfast. She'd almost cut her finger because of how much she had been focused on him. How he looked, how he smiled, how his lips had touched hers…

She had always rolled her eyes at the stupid cliches of love in the few shows that she had watched. Like, there was no way the world could literally appear brighter and more vibrant just because someone liked you. It shouldn't have been possible.

But… that's what was happening to her right now.

The air smelled fresher; the wood grains of the countertop were shinier; the stupid, random knick knacks that lined the walls looked better. Heck, she even liked the sound of the clock ticking more—she'd somehow never noticed how crisp and pleasant it sounded.

It was like her brain had been reprogrammed, and she was now experiencing life from another lens.

Where were the random bouts of self-doubt and the thoughts about her gender, the gnawing sense that everything was hopeless, and the feeling of impending doom that always hung in the background? Why weren't the intrusive, negative thoughts that she was so accustomed to having coming up right now? They should've been there, right?

She blinked as she looked around the stupidly bright and beautiful shop.

Nope, nothing. Well, maybe she still had some of that dysphoria floating around in the background, but right now all she could think of was how cute Tachibana looked when he concentrated, and how his hands felt so nice to hold, and how his voice made her feel like she could melt into a puddle…

Her fists clenched before her brain could drone on. Holy crap. Had she always been this soft and sappy? At this rate, she'd be one of those lovesick girls in anime or dramas, swooning over the tiniest things their partner did. Like 'ooh, the way my boyfriend breathes is so sexy.'

Her face burned a bit at the thought of that. She was the realist. The cynic. The girl that hid all of her pain, sorrow, and dark thoughts behind a sarcastic smile and a witty remark. What was she becoming? Was she really going to let herself turn into some sort of dainty, overly romantic maiden?

"Ahaha~" A giggle spilled from her lips. Oh God, did she just make that noise? What the hell was wrong with her?!

AND WHY WAS SHE LIKING IT?!

The sound of the back door sliding open thankfully caught her attention, although her cheeks immediately started to burn hot as Tachibana walked out carrying a box in his arms. There was a slight sheen of sweat on him from the effort, and his face was slightly flush.

He glanced over at her, his warm eyes meeting her own, and his lips formed into a smile. For a moment, Nitsuki forgot how to exist properly.

"Hey, Nia, could I have your help with something?" He set the box down on the counter and inhaled deeply before leaning against it. His arm muscles were slightly flexed as a result of the movement, and Nitsuki couldn't help but admire them—Nope. No. No. No. Look respectfully. Look. Respectfully.

She spent way more effort than should've been necessary tearing her gaze away before nodding. "Y-yeah! What's up?"

"Could you help me close up shop? We're just about done for the workday, and I wanted to wrap things up quickly so we could tell Gramps about… us."

Nitsuki's eyes darted to the clock. Ah yeah, they had been planning on saving that conversation until after work was done. But damn, did time somehow pass faster whenever she thought about Tachibana? She could've sworn there was still an hour left the last time she checked.

"Er, sure." She hopped off her seat. "Where should we start?"

He pointed at the entrance and the displays as he caught his breath. "Just the usual stuff. Flip the sign, lock the door, bring in whatever's outside. I'll take care of restocking the last of the inventory and counting the register as you're doing that."

She nodded and flashed him a quick smile, trying her best to ignore how fast her heart was beating as she walked past him to start her task.

Damn it. His breathing was kinda sexy.

***

Nitsuki sat cross-legged at the dining table, her posture slightly stiff. To her side was Tachibana, and in front of her was an empty cushion that would soon be filled by the old man.

She fidgeted with the hem of her shirt, her thoughts running a kilometer a minute as they waited for him to come in. She was nervous. Really nervous.

She knew that in theory, the likelihood of Koji reacting negatively to their relationship wasn't super high; the old man cared for both of them. But there was still a part of her that was scared, scared that somehow the worst might happen.

Her mind began to wander to the darker corners of her brain, imagining all of the ways the conversation could go wrong. The urge to look into the potential futures was there. It would be so easy. A simple closing of her eyes and some focus, then she'd be able to confirm or deny whatever plagued her.

She inhaled deeply. This was a rather impactful moment, no? But at the same time, it felt… wrong. Something about peeking in on this moment just didn't sit well with her. She felt worried that she might get pulled aside by D*gimon again to talk about potentially losing out on a great moment because she was too busy thinking of all of the negative ones.

"Nia?" Tachibana reached for her, gently placing his hand on top of hers. "Are you okay?

Eep. His hands felt so sturdy. "I'm, uh, fine. Yeah. Just, um… thinking."

His thumb began to rub the back of hers, making her pulse skyrocket. "You know, we don't have to tell Gramps if you don't want to yet. It's only really been a day. If it's too early, we can postpone—"

"No," she cut him off. "I'm fine. Really." She squeezed his hand in return. "We should tell him. You said you tell him about every single stupid thing you do. I'm pretty sure this is a bit more than stupid."

Tachibana laughed. "True, true." His voice trailed off, and his eyes drifted away. "Well, how should we start things off when he returns then? If you'd like, we can split up the explanation 80-20, and you can let me handle the bulk of it. After all, I'm the one who—"

The wooden door slid open, and the old man stepped in. He glanced around the room, his eyes lingering on Nitsuki's and Tachibana's clasped hands before he sat down across from them. Both of them quickly pulled their hands away, but at that point, it was probably a tiny bit too late.

Koji inhaled very deeply and looked between the two of them. Crap, why did he look so serious? He was almost scowling. Was he angry at them or something?

"So, Rikuo. What's this thing you both wanted to tell me?"

Nitsuki fidgeted nervously in her seat. This was already going downhill. The mood was tense. She was scared. Why did it feel like she was about to get scolded or something?

"Well… erm. Gramps. Remember how you were worried about me being lonely? I don't think you really have to worry about that anymore."

The old man's eyes narrowed. "And why's that?"

"Gramps. Um… You know Nia's a nice lady, right? You like her and all. We grew up together, and she's been a good friend of mine, and you know her quite well, and—"

"Rikuo, get to the point."

"Right. Right, the point. Well, something may have happened yesterday, and erm, Nia and I—"

Koji suddenly held up his hand as if telling Tachibana to stop. For a second, Nitsuki's heart plummeted. This was it. Screw what felt right, she should've looked into the future. She should've—

"When's the baby due?"

"…" Both of them blinked.

"What's the matter? Tongue tied? I figured something was gonna happen the moment this brat here insisted on staying over to 'take care' of you, but I never thought—"

"WHAT THE SHIT, OLD MAN?!" Nitsuki blurted out, her voice cracked as her entire face flushed red.

"GRAMPS!" Tachibana also shouted in embarrassment. "T-the hell are you talking about?! Nia and I are—"

"DATING! Dating!" Nitsuki finished for him, her voice still a bit too high-pitched. "I'm NOT shitting pregnant! I don't even have the damn proper equipment to do that!"

"Ahaha, sorry!" Koji laughed as his demeanor shifted to his usual self. "Couldn't help myself. Should've seen the faces on both of you though. Priceless."

"Old man!" Nitsuki growled. She had the overwhelming urge to scramble the bastard's face.

Koji laughed even harder. "Ehehe, I figured something like this would happen eventually. You two have been dancing around each other ever since middle school. Always staring and smiling at each other and wanting to be around each other." He grinned. "Did you two really think that I was that dense? Plus, the way you both had been acting this weekend was a dead giveaway. It wasn't that hard to put two and two together."

"W-we literally just started dating yesterday, you screwed up fossil! What happened prior to that was just me being a good friend to your dumb grandchild!"

He raised an eyebrow. "Mhm, really? Well, did Tachibana ever tell you how long he's liked you?"

"GRAMPS!” Tachibana pleaded. He looked like a tomato, just like when they'd been at the park. “I already told her, so there's no need—"

"Ever since he was thirteen. Pretty much right when you figured out you were a girl, if I remember right."

"K-KOJIIIIII~" Tachibana whined, burying his face in his hands.

"Wait, seriously?" She looked at Tachibana, surprised. He'd said years, but that long ago? That was way before she'd even got close to transitioning. Like, she'd had to wait until she was freaking twenty to start on any of that stuff. Sure, she'd started presenting more femininely and wearing slightly girlier clothes, but that was it.

The young man nodded, still hiding his face in embarrassment. "Mhm."

The old man continued on, relentless. "Pretty damn sure he liked you even before then, too. He just didn't have the words to describe it yet beyond 'I like Nia. She's cute.' In fact, he's had the biggest, dumbest, most obvious crush on you ever since you became friends. Always kept mentioning how attractive you'd be if you were ever to grow out your hair. Always going on about how cool and funny you were, or how—"

"GRAMPS, PLEASE! ENOUGH!" Tachibana was curled on his side now. Nitsuki was worried whether or not he was even breathing at this point with how red his face was. She wasn't doing much better herself, but at least she was still upright.

The old man leaned back, a satisfied look on his face. "Good, good. So, how'd this all end up happening anyway? Who initiated things?"

The two of them were silent for a few moments. Nitsuki slowly pointed a finger towards Tachibana, who did the same in her direction.

"T-Tachibana?! What the hell?! You're the one who confessed!"

"Y-yeah, but you're the one who wanted to kiss and turn this into an official relationship!"

She blushed hard. "S-shut up! The hell I was just going to just let us be 'dating friends' or whatever crap you suggested!"

Koji grinned as he watched the two of them bicker, the tense mood that she had sensed earlier was completely gone. He was enjoying himself immensely.

"I'm really happy for you two," he finally said as they both calmed down a bit. His voice was soft, genuine. "Truly. It warms this old, dying heart of mine to see that you've finally figured out what was right in front of you." He paused for a moment. "Now I can finally rejoin our ancestors without worrying that my dumb grandson is going to stay a virgin forever."

"GRAMPS!" Tachibana yelled in shock.

"HAHAHAHAHA!" The old man roared with laughter, slapping the table. "Seriously though, I'm happy. I've always liked you, Nitsuki, and I'm glad that you'll be able to make an honest man out of my fool of a grandson."

She blinked, her face hot. She didn't think anyone could fluster her this much, not even Tachibana, but somehow the old man was managing it. "T-thank you, sir."

He smiled and sighed. "Of course. But damn, now I gotta think of a better nickname for you. Can't go around calling my granddaughter in law 'young man'. Hmm…"

Nitsuki's heart flinched a little bit. She knew that the old man meant well, and he was obviously joking around, but… the idea that she might be married to his grandson at some point… It made her really happy. Really, really, really happy. Well, that and the idea he'd stop calling her a young man.

Tachibana suddenly spoke up, his face still flushed. "Erm, sorry to butt in, but Gramps, why did you even start calling her that anyway? You've been doing it ever since we were kids."

The old man stared blankly at Tachibana, then looked over at Nitsuki. "Well, that's because—"

"—Because I was born a boy, right? It's fine, I get it." Nitsuki finished the old man's sentence for him. There was no point beating around the bush.

"…No? It's your work ethic. I admired the way you carried yourself—like a proper man back in my day. Strong, reliable. You've been busting your ass since the moment I met you, so of course I'd—" His eyes suddenly widened as if he'd had an epiphany.

"Wait, hold on. Have I been giving you a hard time calling you that all these years?"

Her mouth fell open. She'd been expecting some sort of excuse or half-baked reason, or something about her birth gender. But really? Her work ethic?

"…Tachibana?"

"Yeah?"

"Can I gut punch your old man?"

He glanced over at the now nervous-looking geezer, still red in the face. "…I'll allow it. Make sure you get him good."

The old man waved his hands frantically. "Oi, oi, oi, my bad, young—shit, NITSUKI! My bad, Nitsuki! I didn't mean to—"

She leaped across the table, arms outstretched.