Chapter 5: Cutting Algae Part Two

[mp_simplyacommoner]

It was 7:50PM. Teru had gotten bored of studying and broke it up with his nightly stretches—he had decided it was going to be an early night to bed. He had already decided he was going to sign up for the next basketball roster and it was offseason practice time.

As it turned out, he couldn’t tolerate a lack of things to do after school for long.

Cooling down from his trunk rotations with some Kamizawa Water, he checked his phone and paused mid-sip. There were a few notifications from Mob that he opened right away. There were a few pictures of what was undoubtedly the long-awaited kaiseki meal…though they were a bit blurry. Oh, one was actually decent in quality. There was also a blurred person in the background of one without much food—even with the lack of clarity it looked like they weren’t expecting to be caught on camera. Had he meant to send that one, let alone take it? Oh well, didn’t matter.

that mukōzuke Send.

( ੭ ˘ ³˘)੭‎°｡⋆♡‧₊˚ Send.

divine looking Send.

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[mp_strikinglyblessed]

Something suddenly clicked in Reigen’s brain when he saw her. There was a silence that he realized had gone on a beat too long before he answered.

“No, no, not at all.” Another beat. He hastily shut his notebook and reconciled his papers until the table was something resembling suitable for a lady to join him.

[mp_npc]

She crossed the room and sat down across from him.

"Most of our guests are already asleep at this hour. Are you having a hard time sleeping?"

[mp_strikinglyblessed]

“I suppose I am a bit restless…” Reigen rubbed at his temple as he tried to focus on not slurring his reply. “I hope I’m not making a ruckus.”

[mp_npc]

Asa shook her head. "You're not. I just saw the light coming from beneath your door and thought maybe you were having a hard time relaxing."

[mp_strikinglyblessed]

"It's not that I'm not relaxed...it's more like--how do I say it..."

'The Work of a Spirit Specialist is never done,' is something he could have said.

'I meditate best with the lights on.'

'Actually yes, but this sake is really getting me there.'

"There's something missing."

[mp_npc]

"I feel the same way, actually." Asa shifted her head, a thick strip of hair cascading over one shoulder as she did so.

[mp_strikinglyblessed]

Reigen hummed in acknowledgement, more clever phrases going unsaid and dissipating before they could fully take form. “I think…I’ve found it, though.”

[mp_npc]

That piqued Asa's curiosity. "What was the thing you were looking for?"

[mp_strikinglyblessed]

“You.”

[mp_npc]

Asa's face reddened. She couldn't deny how much she had been drawn to him since he first arrived here. But she had never dreamed that the attraction would be reciprocated.

"You flatter me," she said, brushing the hair back behind her shoulder. Though she didn't laugh, there was genuine mirth in her voice. "You sure you haven't been drinking too much of the sake I left for you?"

[mp_strikinglyblessed]

The shock and horror at saying such a thing to a client was some far-off chirping in Reigen’s head. His core approach to these situations barely felt like a part of him at all. Not even the obvious out she had given him was spared more than a moment’s thought.

“Maybe, but…I’m serious.” His dark eyes went from her to the sake on the table—huh, had he really drank half of it already? “The castle is a beast. Your warm hospitality is giving me the courage to slay it.”

[mp_npc]

Asa's face grew impossibly warmer. She felt as if she were a woman more idealistic and energized than she felt these days. "Is that so?" she asked, trying to mask her embarrassment with charm. "I made and aged that sake myself."

[mp_strikinglyblessed]

Reigen’s eyes widened at the implications of that. Despite everything that was said, that small voice in his head was shouting through the haze.

“And…you gave it to me?”

[mp_npc]

"I was waiting for the right person to give it to. I was sure that person was you."

[mp_strikinglyblessed]

"I'm...If I said honored I wouldn't be doing it justice." Reigen gently swished the remaining liquid in his glass. "This isn't like any sake I've had before. The tastes that are balanced in here...it's art."

[mp_npc]

"I put a lot of effort into it, so I'd hope that it tastes different fromr your store-bought sake." Asa was smiling as she said the words lightly. There was an edge of playfulness in her voice, as if she felt more at ease here with Reigen than she did even with her own family.

"I made it to commemorate the rainy season. It's my way of honoring the spirit Nagisa. I thought... maybe something salty might make Nagisa feel less alone and her tears less bitter."

[mp_strikinglyblessed]

Reigen was pink up to the tips of his ears from the sheer sentiment of it all. It was like his layers of cynicism had all been peeled away.

“That’s…I’m worried it’s wasted on me now.” Reigen ran a hand through his hair, which was still damp from the baths. He may have slipped and fell in at some point, but she didn’t need to know that. “All that work for someone you met last week.”

[mp_npc]

"It makes me sad to know that you feel that way. We've known each other for a long time, haven't we?"

[mp_strikinglyblessed]

With Asa’s reply—the slight crack of her voice—Reigen’s doubt was snuffed out like a candle. He put his drink to the side and put a hand over her’s.

“You’re right. That wasn’t what I meant. This gift from you…I’m really happy.”

[mp_npc]

"I'm glad." Asa flipped her hand underneath Reigen's so her palm was touching his, then gave it a squeeze.

"We should go for a walk," she said, standing up, her hand still grasping his own. "I think it might be good for the both of us. The air's refreshingly cool at this time of night."

[mp_strikinglyblessed]

Reigen followed her lead immediately—she could have said she wanted to stand at the edge of the cliffs overlooking the sea, toes touching nothing but air, and he would have done so a second thought. Their touching hands were the center of his universe, and he gripped a little harder to keep himself upright against an unsightly wobble. He didn’t think to curse the sake for that one, no, it was too precious a gift.

Reigen’s eyes followed the elegant swoop of Ada’s hair as she turned to lead the way.

“It’s really red…”

[mp_npc]

Asa looked over her shoulder at Reigen, oblivious to what he was talking about. "What is?"

[mp_strikinglyblessed]

“Your hair.” A red streak that cut through the black. Reigen managed to catch it in his clever fingers before it fell to her back, holding the very end of it.

Where had he seen something that red before…?

[mp_npc]

"Oh, you like it?" Asa was pleased. "When I was a teenager, I thought that just because this place was pretty traditional, it didn't mean I need to be."

[mp_strikinglyblessed]

“It suits you. My parents would have never let me get away with something like that.”

Reigen let it fall from his fingers.

“But…maybe they’d change their minds if they met you.”

…

……

Had he said that last part out loud?