Ayakashi: Romance Reborn One-Shots

Tatsuomi | Afternoon Meal

Two bowls of steaming miso soup, accompanied by white rice and a sundry of side dishes, are set in front of you and your childhood friend, Tatsuomi. After exchanging a quick "thank you" to the waiter, you both don't hesitate to dig into the food.

"Ahh, this place is seriously the best!" you exclaim.

"Right? I'll never get tired of this place," he concurs, taking a sip of the hot soup. His quiet "ah" is heard shortly after, making you chuckle.

Gesturing to the side dishes, you ask, "You sure you don't want all of this yummy food with your rice...?" Just like the sound of satisfaction he makes after taking the first bite or sip of food, your question is always asked every time you two have a meal together.

To your surprise, his chopsticks hover over the seasoned tofu, picking a few pieces up and plopping them onto his rice. Your look of complete shock makes him laugh.

"I figured I should try something new with my rice for today."

"No way are you actually Tatsu."

"Oh, come on. I've tried a lot of food that you've asked me to try, you know."

"Yeah, when we were little... that doesn't count. Plus, a lot of the food I made you try were random food combos I created. But this," you tap his bowl of rice, "is a simple meal, which you love, and you're actually eating it with something not simple."

"Seasoned tofu isn't simple...?"

"Not to you, no! You always eat rice on its own to 'maintain the simpleness of the rice' and choose to eat everything else separately."

"Whoops. You caught me." Tatsuomi laughs again, a gloved hand covering his mouth slightly.

You roll your eyes, staring at the brown-haired male in adoration. Lately you haven't been able to spend much time with Tatsuomi due to all the school work piling on top of you. Eating together, whether it be out at a restaurant or at home, is a common way for the both of you to catch up on things.

"Is something on my face?" he asks, brows furrowed.

"No, no. Just..." you trail off, placing the chopsticks down gingerly across the bowl. "I'm glad to be here with you today. Since I've been busy with school and you with your duties and patrols... we haven't been able to spend time together, you know? So it's nice to finally be able to."

Suddenly the sounds of rapid chopping and clacking dishes, mixed with the soft chattering from the people around you, fades into the atmosphere. Tatsuomi's focused gaze on you makes it feel as if time truly froze and you two are the only ones present in the room.

He reaches toward your face and rubs at your lips in a swift manner before retracting his hand, smiling warmly. "You had some pepper flakes on your lips."

"Tatsuomi..."

"I know. We'll have more days to be together, don't worry. Now... eat up; otherwise, I'll eat all the food."

-♡-

In honor of me (so far) successfully not pulling for his birthday cards... here he is: Tatsuomi!! The bit with the seasoned tofu is over exaggerated haha, but I added it in just for dialogue purposes. I'm pretty sure Tatsu wouldn't mind eating his rice with other add-ins.

I'm SO HAPPY the night chapter is out! Can't wait for everybody's routes. If I recall correctly, I think Japan did Akiyasu's route first, but I'm not sure if the English version will follow the same path. I can't read the new chapter yet sadly since I'm still super busy with getting my work and projects done. Have any of you guys read it yet? If so, feel free to share your thoughts on it (spoiler-free, of course).