Bitter Sips

I pushed open the door to my apartment and leaned against it, letting it click shut behind me. My mind kept replaying the events of the day. So much happened, yet it felt like nothing at all. Maybe it just seemed overwhelming because of Suzu.

Even now, my heart hasn’t settled back to its usual rhythm. Every time her face crosses my mind, it speeds up again. My stomach feels like a hive of restless activity, churning and twisting. Despite the chill that had settled in today, everything around me feels strangely fuzzy.

What’s happening to me? Why am I reacting like this? Maybe I need to get checked out by a doctor or something.

"Ah, Bro...ther...?" Nae came out from her room with a surprised look on her face.

"Oh. Hey, Nae. Um... Don't mind me. My brain is just lagging."

"Huh, I'll say. For once, you actually went out. You know how surprised I was when I got that text from you? My brother, possibly the gloomiest person in the world, asked for hangout locations. Is the world coming to an end?"

"Quit being dramatic. It wasn't anything too big."

I say that, and yet, this strange feeling lingered. Maybe a nice nap will cool me down. I'm far too gone to even think right now.

As steadily as I could, I made my way past Nae, who looked more or less like she wanted to say something out of pocket.

"So~ Who did you hang out with?" she asked coyly.

"Not anyone you know."

"Uh-huh, and the sky isn't blue. Maybe it's because you have a weird way of saying the exact opposite when you're trying to hide something."

"Do I really do that?"

"Oho, you bet. I've never met a more terrible liar than you, Brother."

That’s a bold statement. I’ve never been good at lying, but maybe that’s for the best. At least I always make my true thoughts clear, as best as I can. Still, I didn’t realize I was that transparent.

I reached into my pocket and pulled out a small glossy piece of paper.

"Here," I said as I handed it to Nae.

She reached over to grab it, and the moment she saw what it was, her jaws dropped.

"W-what the hell?!" she exclaimed. "That's... Suguha Suzu! And... you?! There's even her autograph. H-how did you..."

"You asked me who I hung out with, didn't you? There's your answer."

I bolted to my room as fast as I could, leaving Nae standing there, utterly bewildered. I went through the motions of washing up and tackling a few chores, but Suguha kept swirling in my mind.

Damn it... There’s something seriously wrong with me.

Suddenly, my phone dinged with a notification. I sat my bed and pulled out the drop bar. It was a notification from Line, and of course, it was exactly who I was expecting.

Suguha: "Did you die yet?"

Me: "About to. What's up? Are you about to rope me into another headache?"

Suguha: "Headache?! What do you mean by that? You can't tell me you didn't have fun today!"

Me: "Maybe I did, maybe I didn't. I'm still unsure."

Suguha: "You're the only person in the world who would ever say that after spending the entire day with one of Sunayomi's members. Hmph. Fine! I don't care if you didn't have fun. Whatever. Hmph!"

Me: "For some strikingly odd reason, I don't believe you."

Suguha: "Blah blah! Goodbye!"

And that was the last of the messages. I couldn't help but crack a smile.

Ah, dammit. Why am I suddenly smiling so much these days? Is it really because of them? Or am I falling back into the pit that will eventually swallow me whole?

Right when I put my phone down, it rang again. I picked it back up to see one last message.

Suguha: "Thanks for today. I wanted to let you know that I had fun. And I'm sorry if you didn't."

Here they go again, making me feel so bad that all I can do is cave in to them. Just for this moment, though... I don't really mind it.

Me: "I'm just messing with you. I had fun as well. Thanks for inviting me."

There were no more messages after that, and thank goodness. As soon as I put my phone down for the last time, I knocked out.

The next morning, I trudged along the busy street. I can’t even remember the last time I had a stable schedule. Thinking back, I kind of miss the flexibility of being able to come in whenever I wanted. It made things a lot easier to manage. Now that I’m Sunayomi’s assistant, that luxury is long gone, and something tells me it’s only going to get worse.

In fact, that 'something' walked right into the coffee shop while I was waiting for my name to be called. I glanced over my shoulder and saw a woman draped in a thick coat with a black bucket hat and sunglasses.

At first, I didn't think anything of it, but then I caught a glimpse of her pink hair. She looked at me for a split second and turned away, then back again, as if the realization had finally sunk in.

"Y-you..." she mumbled.

"Are you serious...? What are you doing here, Mitsuki? I said in the group chat that I'd be picking up the coffee."

"Well, knowing you, you would've woken up hours later, and I wasn't willing to wait that long."

"Give me a little bit of credit. I've been pretty good with my mornings recently."

"I'll give credit when credit is due. As of right now, I don't see any reason to do that."

"Prick."

"What did you say?!"

"Nothing."

"I'm gonna punch you."

I let out a subtle scoff as the cashier called out my name. I grabbed the cupholder packed with the girls’ favorite coffees and made my way back to Mitsuki. With a practiced hand, I selected her a specific cup. As I handed it to her, I felt a small satisfaction upon seeing her bewildered expression.

"Hazelnut latte with an extra shot of espresso, right?" I smiled with just a slight hint of mockery.

"Tch... Look at you, smiling as if it's so~ natural to you now. Gained a bit of bravery, did you? All of a sudden, you're talking back with all the confidence in the world."

"Well, since I'm being ridiculed for something so simple, I should defend myself, shouldn't I? False accusations and all that."

"Hmph..."

She walked off, taking a sip of her coffee. Although her back was turned, I noticed that she stuck her tongue out a bit, probably reacting to the bitterness of that first taste.

"Are you just gonna stand there all day?" she grumbled.

"My bad."