Spill the Heart Pt. 1

I stepped into the living room to see that the other two hadn't moved an inch since falling to the ground. On the floor, Sakuno was sprawled like a starfish, and Shiro was lying right on top of him. I'm glad I didn't drink. Otherwise, there's a good chance I would've ended up as pitiful as them.

From a nearby shelf, I pulled off a blanket and laid it flat on top of them. I wonder what's going to happen when they wake up and find each other like that. If it were me and Taiyori, I wouldn't even know what to do.

I sat down on the couch and shut my eyes. I've slept in enemy territories before. This should be nothing, but it still felt weird to sleep here. Not really sure why. Eventually, I felt myself dozing off, and soon after, I fell asleep.

Suddenly, my eyes sprung open at the sound of a tap. My senses shot up as I stood to look around—another tap.

I looked over to the balcony window, and there, a small bird was pecking the glass. It jerked its head left and right as if curious about the invisible wall. When it noticed me, it quickly flew away.

I let out a sigh of relief. At least it wasn't anything serious. We assassins of the Hunt have been trained to react to any sound even when we're asleep. It came in handy when we had to rest during operations. Looks like I haven't broken out of that habit just yet.

Sakuno, on the other hand... He was still sound asleep with Shiro on top of him. Just how much did he drink?

The clock on the wall read half past two. Did I really only sleep for five hours? Even then, I felt well-rested. I threw my arms up for a stretch before making my way out onto the balcony without a jacket.

I leaned my arms on the railings and took a whiff of the damp, cold air. I don't mind it. In fact, I prefer it over warmer days. There's something about it that feels so much nicer.

"Tsuki?" a voice called from behind.

Taiyori joined me on the balcony with a fuzzy blanket wrapping around her like a poncho. Her hair was all over the place since she just woke up. Nonetheless, she looks so cute.

"Hey," I greeted her with a smile.

"What are you doing out here so late?" she asked as she approached me.

"Nothing much. Just... thinking, I suppose. Aren't you cold?"

"Eh, not really. This blanket is enough."

Like me, she rested her arms on the railings. Even with just the corner of my eye, I could see that she was lying. Her body was subtly shaking, but she kept her cool like a professional.

"How are you feeling?" I asked. "Any better?"

"Not at all," she groaned while resting her hand on her forehead. "My head is throbbing so badly. What kind of wine did you get?"

"The hardest one they had."

"That explains a lot..."

"Sakuno enjoys his wine with a kick. I suppose I wasn't really thinking about you and Shiro. That's my fault."

"No worries. Just a heads up next time would be nice. I feel like I'll die if I try to think about anything."

"Then I'm assuming you don't remember what happened before you fell asleep."

At first, her reaction was minimal. She simply stared at me as if I were talking nonsense. However, with the passing of each second, her face gradually morphed into realization as if she were steadily remembering.

"Tsuki..." she muttered. "Did... D-did we...?"

"No," I scoffed. "You really think I'd do that to you when you're drunk?"

"Who knows? You're one of the most unpredictable boys I've ever met."

"Hah. Well, rest easy. I told you, didn't I? I'd never hurt you."

Taiyori paused for a moment to look at my smile. I meant what I said last time, but I'm still not sure if she knew that. She may have just passed it off as hollowed words, but I want to make it clear to her.

"Why are you being weird all of a sudden...?" she mumbled.

"Ah, was that weird?" I asked. "I suppose I'm not as adept in 'normal' speech as I thought I was."

"Eh? N-no, that's not what I-"

"Haha, relax, Taiyori. I'm just messing with you."

"Tch... You shouldn't play with a girl's emotions when she's tipsy."

"Sorry, sorry."

Taiyori pursed her lips and forced a pout. It made me want to laugh, but I kept it in. She'd never let it go.

When she finally calmed down, she tilted her head and leaned it against my arm. Together, we looked off into the night sky above the university shrouded in darkness.

Just like every other time we do something remotely close to being intimate, my heart is starting to beat faster. I wonder if it's the same for her.

"You know... I was listening the other day," Taiyori said.

"Hm? Listening? To what?" I asked.

"When you were fighting with Kurobe's friends."

She's talking about my first day back from the Osaka mission. At the time, I was still actively trying to avoid her. I suspected that she might've been there since she stepped out at the last minute, but I wasn't expecting it.

"Those were just words I spat out impulsively," I mumbled. "Don't think too much about it."

"Even if that were the case, which I know that it wasn't, it still made me happy," she said. "Everyone always calls me 'Belle.' They see me as a model who stands at the top of perfection. But you... Hehe..."

She lifted her head to face me with a gentle smile. The fatigue must've caught up to her, as her eyes were now droopy and heavily squinting.

"What was it you said?" she smirked. "You don't care about their Belle. Instead, you cared about 'Taiyori Ayaka.' In other words... me. Is there something you wanted to tell me?"

"...Like what?" I gulped.

"Like... You have a secret crush on me?"

"And what if I do?"

Immediately, her eyes sprung wide open. "E-eh?! W-wait, what? What do you mean by that?!"

"Hah. Why are you getting flustered when you're the one who asked?"

"I-I didn't expect you to actually answer it!"

"Well, I am. I'm asking you, Taiyori... If I did have a crush on you, what would you do?"

The winds picked up, flailing her hair towards me. Despite how cold it was, her body wasn't shaking as much as before.

Is she surprised? It seems like it, but I wasn't asking that question as a joke. I'm genuinely curious to know what she would say.

Finally, her mouth closed, her eyes lowered, and she faced the dark skies above.

"Well... I'm not sure," she replied. "I'm kinda curious too. How would I react? You've no idea how many boys came up and confessed to me, and every time, I knew what my answer was gonna be. I turned them all down because I was afraid of getting hurt. With you, though... I genuinely don't know. Are you gonna end up hurting me too?"

I let out a scoff. "I've hurt a lot of people in the past, and all of them ended up dead."

In turn, she giggled. "Heh, then I guess I should tread carefully around you, hm?"

"You're the one person who doesn't have to worry about that, Taiyori."

She gently pushed me back and gave me a wink. Her arms reached high into the sky for a stretch.

"By the way, Tsuki..." Taiyori said.

"Hm," I replied.

"Have you ever had a girlfriend before?"