Standing Loud

By the time Tachibana returned with the menu, Nitsuki was holding Yamaguchi in her arms, gently patting her back as the girl cried into her shirt. She looked up and shook her head at the confused expression on Tachibana's face.

"Is… Is this a bad time?" he asked, fidgeting slightly, unsure of how to handle the situation.

"No," Nitsuki replied, continuing to pat the unsure young woman on her back. "We're fine I think. We're just getting a head start."

Tachibana nodded, setting the menu down on the table. "You two want to put in an order then?" he whispered.

"Sure." She glanced at Yamaguchi. "Do you want to eat something?"

She nodded, sniffling. "C-can you order something for me, Miss Amano?"

"If you're sure. Although, as a heads-up, my taste in snacks are usually the same as me: dry, bitter, and a tiny bit bland."

Yamaguchi giggled at that, and Nitsuki cracked a smirk. "Alright, fair warning given. You ready, Tachibana?"

He gave a thumbs-up. "I'm on it. What'll it be?"

With her free hand, she messaged the order as well as some vital information to Tachibana through her phone:

 > Please get Yamaguchi something sweet and filling like a parfait or something. It doesn't have to be from the menu. Pretty sure the young lady has a sweet tooth.

 > Also, can you ask Aiko if we can use the side room?

"…Got it," Tachibana said, nodding as he processed the information. He quickly tapped out a reply.

 >> Mrs. Aiko's already got the side room reserved for us. Think she was surprised we didn't ask earlier tbh. Said we can move our meeting there if we wanted to.

 >> I can let her know about the parfait.

 >> Also going to get a matcha cake for my amazing girlfriend while I'm at it. (｡•̀ᴗ-)✧

"T-thanks, Tachibana." Nitsuki bashfully smiled as he walked off, then she turned to Yamaguchi. "Hey, so, the old lady's letting us use a different room that's a bit more private. Seeing as it's about our scheduled meeting time, do you mind moving over there?"

She sniffled, pulling back from the hug to look Nitsuki in the eyes. "A-are we going to continue talking there?"

"Only if you want to," Nitsuki assured.

"I-I want to! Please!"

Nitsuki chuckled. "Then of course. We can continue talking there."

The young woman smiled, her face red and puffy from crying. "Th-thank you so much, Miss Amano. Seriously. You don't know how much this means to me."

Her heart melted as she shook her head. "Don't mention it. I'm just doing what I'd have wanted others to do for me. Anyways, let's save all this mushy crap for later. We'll have plenty of time to do so while we stuff our faces—"

"Tch. What a waste of time."

Nitsuki and Yamaguchi both jumped at the sudden voice. Nitsuki turned to see a group of people sitting at a table close to the entrance: two middle-aged women and an elderly man. They were part of Inoue's entourage if she remembered right.

Her face hardened. When had they sneaked in? They certainly weren't present when she and Yamaguchi had started their talk.

"Excuse me?" she asked, narrowing her gaze. "I didn't quite catch that."

The group looked at each other, the two women sniggering as the older man spoke.

"Oh, nothing," he drawled. "Just enjoying my coffee, is all." He paused to take a sip. "Mm. Delicious. I wonder, have you ever heard of munchausen syndrome, 'sir'?"

She felt Yamaguchi begin to tense beside her, but Nitsuki reassuringly squeezed the young woman's hand. She didn't need to worry about this, especially not from a man whose soul probably looked as shriveled as his face.

"Sorry, can't say I have," she replied flatly before turning away and toward the girl. "Come, let's just leave the geriatric to their own business." She stood up from her chair, motioning for her to follow.

However, they had barely taken a few steps away before the old man's voice rang out once more.

"It's the term they use to describe someone who feigns illness to get attention and sympathy. I've seen it a lot, especially amongst the young, and it's truly pathetic." He clicked his tongue. "Inoue's right as usual. The sickness is spreading, and you're infecting this ignorant boy with your behavior."

"…"

Nitsuki clenched her teeth as she sensed Yamaguchi shrink beside her. Her stomach churned and twisted, but she held in her anger and gently tugged the young woman along.

The side room was right there, all they needed to do was—

"Hey, I'm talking to you!" The old man's voice rose to a shout as he blocked their passage with his cane. "Do you think you can just ignore your elders?! Do you think I don't know what's going on here?! You're trying to spread your delusions to this poor, innocent child, and for what? Your ego?"

"…Get out of the way, please," she hissed, trying to keep her voice steady.

The old man's eyes went wide, and his face twisted into a dark red. "Excuse me? No, I am not going to let you convert this poor, confused young man into some raging, delusional, homosexual pervert—"

Nitsuki slammed her fist into the closest table, causing the wood to creak and the hecklers to flinch.

She saw red.

"Listen to me, old man. You can go ahead and call me slurs behind my back all you want. But if you have the gall to insult one of the bravest young adults I've met in a long time, then we have a problem."

She could feel her cheeks grow hot as she stared them down. Honestly, she was absolutely terrified of them—not in a physical sense, she wouldn't hesitate to push them down a flight of stairs if she weren't such an angel—but her protective instincts toward the girl next to her were too strong.

She would protect her.

Someone had to.

"…" The old man glowered at them for a few moments before suddenly smirking and standing up from his chair.

"Hey! Fuyumi! We have two gay malcontents stirring up trouble!" he called out. "Get over here and deal with them! The older one just slammed your table!"

Nitsuki froze, her blood running cold. Oh no. Oh nonononono.

She could hear footsteps approaching, and it took all of her willpower to keep from shaking as a familiar face appeared in the hallway.

Why? WHY?! She'd tried so hard to build up good will with Aiko—to be on her best behavior. Was all of that just gone now?! Thrown out the window?! All because of some tyrannical care-home patients?!

The old woman's lips were drawn tight as she marched closer toward them with a metal serving tray in hand.

Nitsuki clenched her free hand and moved a shivering Yamaguchi behind her. She didn't want her to be subjected to a tongue lashing, so it'd probably be best to make a break for it now. However, as they started to back away, the old codger just moved his cane again slightly to the left, blocking their escape.

Damn it! That BASTARD!

The old man sniggered as their inevitable doom approached. "About time you showed up, Fuyumi! These are the pair of homos making a ruckus over here!"

Nitsuki felt pins and needles all across her body in anticipation of Aiko's wrath. The old woman stood in front of them now, glowering at them with orbs of fire. Nitsuki could feel Yamaguchi's grip tighten on her arm; the girl had begun to quietly sob.

Oh God, this was it.

She never even got to have her damn matcha cake.

"Fuyumi, I know how busy you are. So, if you want, I can help you teach these two a lesson," the old man said. "They've been incredibly disrespectful to me and mine, so I'm sure you can imagine the stress they'd cause if left unchecked—"

*SLAM*

The sound of metal impacting wood rang through the cafe like a gunshot.

"Kazuhito. Get out."

"…" The old bastard gawked at Aiko, his mouth dropping open. "F-Fuyumi? Wh-what did you just say to me? Don't tell me that you're siding with these two deviants—?!"

"GET. OUT!"

Aiko's shout echoed throughout the small cafe, causing everyone to flinch. The two middle-aged ladies immediately got up from the table and scurried out the door like a pair of rats.

The old man, however, was still in shock. "Fuyumi…?" He looked around the room, his eyes wide and confused. "What…? How can you possibly defend these people? These freaks?! If you seriously think that Inoue and the association leadership will approve of what you're doing right now, then—"

Aiko didn't let him finish.

"Enough. Do not presume to lecture me on what I can and cannot do in my own cafe." Her expression twisted into a sneer. "You're just as bad as Asako, you know that? Always trying to get your grubby little fingers into other people's business."

She took a deep breath before continuing. "Now, as I said before, get out of this establishment… You and your friends are no longer welcome here."

The man stared at her as that last bombshell fell, his face pale. "Y-you can't be serious. Are you banning us? After everything that we've done for you and this place?! For the sake of this town?! Y-you can't do this. We'll get every respectable member in the association to boycott you. You won't get a single—"

She shoved past him and opened the door, nearly burning a hole into his skull with her glare.

"Enjoy your convenience store coffee then. Now. OUT!"

***

The man had eventually left, grumbling and cursing the entire time. Once he was gone, Aiko had closed the door behind him and locked it. Then she turned and gave Nitsuki and Yamaguchi an annoyed, tired look before corralling them into the side room.

It had taken a long while until Yamaguchi calmed down enough to speak. Nitsuki had held her close and rubbed her back, trying to soothe her while Tachibana handed her the sweet parfaits he'd ordered. Eventually though, it worked. Turns out, it's a lot harder to cry when stuffing your face with ice cream and fruit.

Currently, Nitsuki just shook her head as she washed her hands in the bathroom. She was still trying to wrap her head around the entire thing. What kind of person did that to a child? Just what did they have to gain by being so awful?

More surprising though was that she'd have to remember to thank Mrs. Aiko later. As much as she hated to admit it, the old woman had really come through for them. It was hard to think that the same hag that had been so prickly about her coming out all those years ago had been the one to defend them so fiercely. Had she finally gone senile or something?

The last of the cool water splashed across her skin, and she flicked the faucet off before taking a towel to dry herself.

Well, at least that was over for now.

Nitsuki began thinking of what to do now as she exited the bathroom—Tachibana was currently keeping the kid company as she freshened up. Maybe they could continue where they had left off? Or could they just talk about whatever was on the young woman's mind? They could do just about anything as long as it would help get Yamaguchi's mind away from that earlier confrontation.

She also knew that at some point, they'd have to connect the girl with someone a bit more qualified dealing with these things than them. They would still definitely be here to support her as a group since her family sure as hell didn't, but she desperately needed some sort of unbiased professional insight.

Nitsuki began thinking of potential avenues to take for that battle, however, as soon as she opened the door and stepped outside, her eyes met the gaze of a certain cafe hag.

"Amano. Come here for a moment. I'd like to have a brief word with you," Mrs. Aiko said.

Nitsuki cautiously sized her up. She didn't seem to be inherently hostile, but it was hard to tell with the old woman sometimes.

"Right now?" she asked. "Look, if this is a confession, stalking someone outside the bathroom is a bit weird. Also, I'm afraid the age gap might be a bit too large for my taste."

"…" She didn't react—at all. Instead, she just motioned for Nitsuki to follow.

Hmph. Tough crowd.

There wasn't really any reason to refuse, so Nitsuki trailed after her. Eventually, they stopped in a small, dimly lit hallway that led to the kitchen.

"Alright. What's up, old woman?"

Mrs. Aiko frowned. "I wanted to apologize."

Nitsuki vacantly blinked. Then, she held out her hand and looked up at the ceiling. "Huh, weird. Sky doesn't seem to be falling."

"You don't have to make light of the situation, Amano. This is hard enough to admit already," the old woman harrumphed.

"Sorry, sorry. I couldn't resist." She uneasily chuckled before clearing her throat. Sheesh, her humor was going to get her in trouble again someday. "So, uh, what exactly is this about?"

Mrs. Aiko sighed. "I failed to provide a safe environment for the people I hosted. Sorry."

"… For a second there, I thought you were gonna say you were sorry for how you treated me before." Nitsuki's lips curled upwards into a wry grin. "That's a shame."

Aiko's eyebrows furrowed, and she crossed her arms. "Don't push it, Amano. I'm still not a fan of you. And honestly? The main reason why I intervened was because of the kid."

"Eh, I figured as much." Nitsuki's shoulders sagged just a tiny bit. "Well, doesn't surprise me too much. You always had a soft spot for cute things, right?"

"…" The cafe hag didn't respond, instead choosing to glare at the wall. "Anyways, that's all I had to say. Now go and hurry on back to your group. They'll be getting antsy without you."

The old lady had just turned to walk away when Nitsuki called out to her.

"Wait, Mrs. Aiko… I'm not sure if it's too late or not, but… thank you for the apology." She gave a deep bow. "And thank you for defending us earlier. It was brave of you. And I'm grateful for it."

Mrs. Aiko came to a halt. She turned slightly to look over her shoulder with an unreadable expression.

"…It was nothing, Amano." She sighed. "Now, go. Comfort the kid or irritate your boyfriend—I don't care which."

"!" Nitsuki's eyes nearly popped from their sockets. "S-shit, what are you talking about? I don't know what you've heard from the rumors, but Tachibana isn't my—"

The old woman waved a hand. "Whatever. Just don't go overboard in my cafe, got it?"

Nitsuki watched her go, her mouth still open mid-protest before the cafe hag flashed a smug, knowing—and quite frankly, terrifying on her—smirk.

"My music isn't that loud."