Chapter 19

At a random bookstore/coffee shop, Daiya and Yurina sat at a small table, each with a different cup in their hand. He sipped his chai, making noises like it was the most delicious drink in the whole wide world. Yurina had her eyes set on a book called 'Gods of the Upper Air' by Charles King, which caught her interest due to the name. But what attracted her attention was the cover, depicting a beautiful landscape full of greenery, trees, mountains, and clouds. It was gorgeous and looked photorealistic.

"What is that? Fantasy?"

"You're not familiar with Charles King, are you?"

"Um...no? Should I be?" Daiya tilted his head, holding his cup tightly, pressing it against his lips. "Do I look like I read fantasy shit?"

"It's not fantasy. It's history." Her tone turned almost offended, causing a smirk to play along his mouth as he enjoyed her animated reaction. She caught herself blushing and pouted. He laughed a bit too loud and reached across the table, slightly squeezing her knee. She tensed at first but quickly relaxed and smacked him upside the head with the thick hardcover book.

"Oww," he groaned dramatically. "Christ, Yurina."

"Don't be annoying," she huffed, paging through the book while sipping her mocha latte. "So, when exactly is this party?" Yurina glanced up to find Daiya gazing absentmindedly out of the nearby window. She followed his line of sight outside, where a mother walked hand in hand with her child, an older couple sitting on a park bench and sharing a bag of sweets, and several people who were walking in pairs.

"Soon. Tomorrow, actually." He turned back to Yurina. "Are you coming or not?"

"You're lucky I managed to finish all my assignments for the week yesterday."

"Yesterday? Wasn't I with you all day yesterday?"

Yurina blinked innocently and set down her book, crossing her arms over her chest. "Before you barged into my room, I was about to get some much-needed rest. I was up for hours, trying to get my work done." He took in the information, slowly nodding his head. He remembered clearly how often her head had dropped or bobbed, her eyes growing heavy with each passing moment. "Why were you up so late?"

Yurina didn't want to divulge that she had an early nap with Wataru. That'd definitely send Daiya down an emotional tailspin if he found out, though Yurina was still completely oblivious to that fact. "After I finished taking my midterm exams, I went back to the dorm and ended up falling asleep. By the time I woke up, it was already midnight. So..." She shrugged. "You know how it is. That's college for you."

She was clearly not telling him everything. While that wasn't usually something that bothered Daiya, it certainly did this time. But he kept a straight face, trying to hide his displeasure from her. It shouldn't matter to him anyway whether Yurina told him every detail, especially since he had nothing real to offer her.

"Hm." Daiya swirled his cup gently and peered inside the mug, inspecting the leftover dregs closely as if they were providing him with answers to questions that had been bugging him. Of course, Yurina was noticing his shift in demeanor. She put her drink aside and leaned over to knock the side of his head lightly with her knuckles, smiling fondly.

"Where'd ya go? You know I'm not good at reading people. Say something," she said softly, peering curiously. He made no further indication of hearing her, continuing to focus intently on whatever inner demons plagued him. Sighing heavily, Yurina brushed a hand against his own, and he met her eyes for the first time since she last spoke.

He finally placed his drink down, looking down at their connected hands for a moment, then returning his attention to Yurina's concerned expression. "Sorry. I was just thinking about something. You cool if I leave early?" Yurina simply nodded silently and watched him pull his wallet out, setting cash down on the table. "Text me later." He patted her shoulder and sauntered toward the exit.

As Daiya departed, Yurina rested her chin in the palm of her hand and gazed out of the glass window. "What just happened?" She wondered aloud. That didn't feel normal, and Yurina wondered if she'd somehow upset the man. That thought saddened her. What was the point of sitting around now when Daiya was long gone, and she had nothing else better to do?

So, book and coffee in hand, Yurina stood, pushed her chair into the table, and left the establishment. She went back to her dorm and immediately curled up in bed to read for the time being.

Meanwhile, Daiya had gone to Shigeru's dorm to relax and smoke some of the stress away. It didn't help much, so to speak. "What strain is this?" He asked, blowing smoke through his nose.

"Fire Larry," came a muffled reply, a cigarette half hanging out.

"Shit." Daiya coughed a couple of times and put his blunt aside for a minute. He slumped onto the floor of Shigeru's dorm, his head resting against the edge of the mattress, brows furrowed deep in thought. That woman was everywhere. She was constantly on his mind, making his imagination wander into dangerous territory, territory that would cause him to lose his bachelor ways. And he just couldn't have that.

"What's got you so down in the dumps?" Shigeru inquired.

"Nothing, man." Daiya took another long drag, holding it in for a few seconds before exhaling softly. "So, this party I'm going to tomorrow, Yurina's gonna tag along." Shigeru perked up at the sound of his junior's name and smirked, giving his underclassman a devilish grin.

"No shit. Really?" Daiya, whose only responding gestures were head nods and noncommittal grunts, remained silent, puffing lazily at the half-burnt joint. Shigeru rolled onto his stomach and watched Daiya slumped further onto the carpet. "Oh, yeah. You've got it bad." Wagging his brows, Shigeru snickered at his buddy's uncharacteristic silence.

"Bullshit. I'm just inviting her 'cause, y'know, she's nice to look at, and I wanna hit it." His thoughts lingered briefly on the memory of how firm and soft her thighs and ass were. "All good, bro."

"See, this is why I distanced myself," Shigeru teased, chuckling loudly as he took a hit. "Yurina's too fucking innocent for the likes of you." Shigeru could tell his friend was reluctant to admit anything, but he felt that even Daiya was aware of the gravity of the situation. Shigeru laughed heartily when Daiya threw him a look that clearly conveyed an 'eat shit' message. "What? It's true."

"Yeah, you distanced yourself. I wonder why. Maybe you're afraid of some competition?" Daiya mused aloud, taking one last drag and stubbing it out on the ashtray that had been placed on the desk beside the queen-sized bed. He shifted his weight against the furniture behind him, resting his forearms on his legs as he pondered.

"Nah. We're both after different things," Shigeru admitted, flopping over on his back and staring at the ceiling. "She's a good girl. You know, if either one of us, Wataru included, sticks around, then we'd end up getting attached. But I have no intention of doing that."

Daiya let out a dramatic sigh and rubbed the back of his neck absently. "Look, I don't plan on keeping her, but I was thinking...maybe we could hang out more, y'know? Is that stupid?" Shigeru glanced in Daiya's direction with a bit of surprise plastered across his face. Had he actually fallen for someone? Sure, Yurina had a nice body, and she was pretty fun to be around, but Shigeru had no clue that Daiya saw her as anything other than an easy screw.

"It's not the greatest idea, given our line of work." 

Daiya grunted and let his eyes fall shut. He didn't want a relationship with her. He just wanted to keep her around. He liked being around her, even if she'd whack him upside the head with a hardcover book or call him out whenever his foot was stuck in his mouth. "Speaking of work," he said, pulling his phone from his pocket. He sighed and looked at the message he'd received earlier while out with Yurina. "I best get to it."