( he doesn't hear his phone ring first couple of times. not because he's ignoring her, but because he was in the shower, so he's considerably alarmed when he grabs his phone off his desk to see there's a bunch of missed calls.
his heart drops. what happened? why is she calling like this?
as soon as he hears it ring again, he's already rushing out the door as he picks up.
the sound of her voice feels like a punch in the throat. )
Chiyo—?!
I'm—I'm on the street outside my house. Are you okay?
[ Hearing his voice only makes her want to cry again. She opens her mouth and chokes on her words. ]
I-I'm... [ She's not okay. ] I'm...
I need a hug. [ She needs to hug him, to make sure he's still here, he's still alive. He's not dead. He's not a ghost. He's not or he's not yet, and that's the most heartbreaking consideration. ]
I'm at the bus stop closest to your house. I'm coming to you.
( he doesn't know what to say. it takes every ounce of self control that he has not to start running towards her. something's wrong, something's happened, and there's a weird kind of fury bubbling underneath his skin. what has her so upset? who has her so upset? he's going to find out and once he does, he's going to beat who ever caused this until his hands are raw. )
Okay. Okay.
( that line of thought is all it takes before he's sprinting down the street towards the bus stop. it doesn't matter that he just said okay and doesn't matter that she said she was coming to him. she was the one who needed the hug, right? she came running for him last time, didn't she?
how could he not?
he runs nonstop until he gets there, completely out of breath, but all but crashing into her to embrace her in a strong hug. he hasn't even bothered to hang up yet, only had enough mind to shove it into his pocket. )
[ Their phones are going to be dead by the end of this because Chiyo's still on her phone as she trots her way towards Yukine, and when she sees him coming for her, her arms just drop to her sides in surprise. ]
Y-Yukine—
[ She trembles and wraps her arms around him. How solid he feels is a relief, and as brittle as her insides feels, her grip on him is tight. ]
I feel awful.
[ She starts to cry again despite how she thought earlier she was all cried out. ]
( that's fine. they don't need them anymore and there are plenty of chargers in the house. the death of their phones will not be in vain. for it is a noble sacrifice!
his hold on her is equally snug, holding her flush against him like he might shield her from whatever was the cause of this. )
I'm sorry.
( he doesn't know what to say. not yet at least when he wants her to have the moment to cry without being interrogated. then after a brief pause— )
I just heard some bad news. It'll be okay. [ She wants to hope that won't become a lie. ] Stay the way you are, Yukine. You're so good and caring, and I want you to know that. I love you so much. Never forget that.
[ She promised she'd let Yato tell Yukine about what he knows, and it's a promise she'll keep no matter how much she wants this secret off her chest. It's a heavy weight, and it's not one she ever imagined having to carry. ]
What sort of bad news? Do you want to talk about it?
( adjusting to hold her with one arm, freeing up a hand to gently rub her back like that might make everything a little easier. something about the way she answers him is weird, but he can't put his finger on it. was it really bad news? or something else? )
Listen, if anyone is making you unhappy, let me know. I'll take care of it, okay?
( just in case. he'll knock jaws if her "bad news" is that someone was a jackass to her. )
What are you talking about? I'm the same as I've always been. For better or worse.
( and pause and then very sincerely: )
You're mine too. I love you. You're one of the people I love the most.
It's— not something I can talk about right now. I don't know if I would know how talk about it even if I could. It's... a secret. Someone else's secret, and I don't want to betray that.
[ She's honest but not honest enough, and it makes her feel worse than lying outright. The subject of the secret is trying his best to comfort her, and all she can do is cry and be vague. Right now, she's the jackass. ]
Take care of yourself for the better. Please? That's what I want most for you.
[ She presses her forehead against his shoulder. Seeing him and hearing him like this only serves to make Chiyo more clingy. ]
Can I— Is it okay if I stay over tonight? I don't— [ to miss you. ] think I have the energy to go all the way home.
( he breathes out, trying to consider what to say to that. he's not going to try to pry if it's a secret, especially someone else's secret. that's not for him to know, not for chiyo to share, and he can respect that. actually, that's much better than the idea that someone had hurt her. he could deal with this.
the both of them could deal with this.
but wow, this had to be some serious secret. he still kind of wants to know despite himself. )
Okay. I get it. Well, maybe not entirely, but I understand?
( gently patting her back. he doesn't comment to the "take care of yourself" part purposely. this isn't about him. nothing about right now has anything to do with him and he doesn't want the conversation to go down that road. no, he wants to do what he can to make chiyo feel better, not frustrate her with his bad habits. )
Yea. You don't even need to ask.
( it's an immediate answer. his house, or well his aunt's, is basically her house too. then he lets out a little whuff of a laugh and smiles. it's time to try and lighten the mood. )
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
no subject
his heart drops. what happened? why is she calling like this?
as soon as he hears it ring again, he's already rushing out the door as he picks up.
the sound of her voice feels like a punch in the throat. )
Chiyo—?!
I'm—I'm on the street outside my house. Are you okay?
no subject
I-I'm... [ She's not okay. ] I'm...
I need a hug. [ She needs to hug him, to make sure he's still here, he's still alive. He's not dead. He's not a ghost. He's not or he's not yet, and that's the most heartbreaking consideration. ]
I'm at the bus stop closest to your house. I'm coming to you.
no subject
( he doesn't know what to say. it takes every ounce of self control that he has not to start running towards her. something's wrong, something's happened, and there's a weird kind of fury bubbling underneath his skin. what has her so upset? who has her so upset? he's going to find out and once he does, he's going to beat who ever caused this until his hands are raw. )
Okay. Okay.
( that line of thought is all it takes before he's sprinting down the street towards the bus stop. it doesn't matter that he just said okay and doesn't matter that she said she was coming to him. she was the one who needed the hug, right? she came running for him last time, didn't she?
how could he not?
he runs nonstop until he gets there, completely out of breath, but all but crashing into her to embrace her in a strong hug. he hasn't even bothered to hang up yet, only had enough mind to shove it into his pocket. )
no subject
Y-Yukine—
[ She trembles and wraps her arms around him. How solid he feels is a relief, and as brittle as her insides feels, her grip on him is tight. ]
I feel awful.
[ She starts to cry again despite how she thought earlier she was all cried out. ]
no subject
his hold on her is equally snug, holding her flush against him like he might shield her from whatever was the cause of this. )
I'm sorry.
( he doesn't know what to say. not yet at least when he wants her to have the moment to cry without being interrogated. then after a brief pause— )
What happened? How can I help?
no subject
[ She promised she'd let Yato tell Yukine about what he knows, and it's a promise she'll keep no matter how much she wants this secret off her chest. It's a heavy weight, and it's not one she ever imagined having to carry. ]
You're my favorite cousin.
no subject
( adjusting to hold her with one arm, freeing up a hand to gently rub her back like that might make everything a little easier. something about the way she answers him is weird, but he can't put his finger on it. was it really bad news? or something else? )
Listen, if anyone is making you unhappy, let me know. I'll take care of it, okay?
( just in case. he'll knock jaws if her "bad news" is that someone was a jackass to her. )
What are you talking about? I'm the same as I've always been. For better or worse.
( and pause and then very sincerely: )
You're mine too. I love you. You're one of the people I love the most.
no subject
[ She's honest but not honest enough, and it makes her feel worse than lying outright. The subject of the secret is trying his best to comfort her, and all she can do is cry and be vague. Right now, she's the jackass. ]
Take care of yourself for the better. Please? That's what I want most for you.
[ She presses her forehead against his shoulder. Seeing him and hearing him like this only serves to make Chiyo more clingy. ]
Can I— Is it okay if I stay over tonight? I don't— [ to miss you. ] think I have the energy to go all the way home.
no subject
( he breathes out, trying to consider what to say to that. he's not going to try to pry if it's a secret, especially someone else's secret. that's not for him to know, not for chiyo to share, and he can respect that. actually, that's much better than the idea that someone had hurt her. he could deal with this.
the both of them could deal with this.
but wow, this had to be some serious secret. he still kind of wants to know despite himself. )
Okay. I get it. Well, maybe not entirely, but I understand?
( gently patting her back. he doesn't comment to the "take care of yourself" part purposely. this isn't about him. nothing about right now has anything to do with him and he doesn't want the conversation to go down that road. no, he wants to do what he can to make chiyo feel better, not frustrate her with his bad habits. )
Yea. You don't even need to ask.
( it's an immediate answer. his house, or well his aunt's, is basically her house too. then he lets out a little whuff of a laugh and smiles. it's time to try and lighten the mood. )
Want me to carry you?