𝐂𝐀𝐏𝐓𝐈𝐕𝐀𝐓𝐈𝐍𝐆 - 𝘧𝘳𝘶𝘪𝘵𝘴 𝘣𝘢𝘴𝘬𝘦𝘵 ✔︎

the bookstore // hatori sohma

There was nothing special about working at a bookstore. The aesthetic about it was fun and exciting, quite romantic as well, but in reality - it smelled, was full of old people, and didn't even pay that well.

I sighed as I hauled another crate of books into the main foyer.

I was organizing the books by genre and alphabetizing them in the process, humming along to the music that played softly in the background of the store.

I was lost in my train of thought, twirling around the store and putting the new books on their respective shelves.

"Excuse me?" A voice.

I stopped dead in my tracks and slowly turned to meet the owner of the said voice. It was a man I knew quite well, an old friend, Hatori Sohma.

He still had such a mysterious vibe about him. Looking very sharp in his suit, he's always so formal- and he's been like that ever since I met him.

-(flashback)-

"Hatori~! Y/N~!"

Hatori and I stopped our conversation and turned to see who had called us.

A very loud and bubbly boy came up from behind us. His long white hair and golden eyes were unmistakable, "Oh, hello Ayame!" I smiled up at him. "Hello, Ayame." Hatori said with a small smile.

"Oh, this is just wonderful! I was looking for you two for AGES!" He sighed dramatically and it caused me to giggle and Hatori to pinch the bridge of his nose.

"Shigure got himself into a bit of trouble, and it's our job as his best friends to be there for him with all our love and support!" Ayame announced. His over-the-top actions and personality were always a delight.

"Aya, please calm down." Hatori rested his hand on Ayame's shoulder and they just looked at each other for a few seconds.

"Alright, Tori! Whatever you say," Ayame threw his hand behind him and shooed the thought away, "But seriously, Gure had quite the tumble down those stairs." He turned and started walking in the direction of our hurt friend.

My eyes widened at his words, "STAIRS?! WHY DIDNT YOU START WITH THAT?!?" I grabbed Hatori's hand and ran down the hallway, past Ayame, and we finally found where Shigure was.

He was sitting on the bottom step, holding his ankle in a very gentle way. "OMG! Gure, what happened?" I said, kneeling to get a better look at his injury.

"I didn't see the 'FLOOR JUST WAXED' sign, and I think you can guess what happened next." Shigure awkwardly chuckled as he rubbed the back of his neck.

Ayame had caught up with us at this point, "God Y/N, I thought at the speed you were running, you might've pulled Tori's arm off." He threw his hair back in a sassy manner and stared at me with a smirk.

"He's just fine!" I retorted, sticking my tongue out at him.

"Yeah, well it seems you've still got a hold of him with his hand all over you like that." Ayame stated and crossed his arms across his chest.

I was confused at what he was referring to, and then I felt it- Hatori's hand was gently holding my shoulder. His fingers twitched when I realized. I looked up to see Hatori all flustered, and he took his hand away quickly.

"Sorry." Hatori stated as his eyes averted my gaze.

"It's really okay," I trailed off and turned my attention back to Ayame, "See what happens when you open your mouth??! You made Tori uncomfortable!" I waved my finger in his face and he looked shocked.