『 Aisle Three 』

5.

『 Cute hair pins & Kitty-chan 』

Tsukishima had a long day at school. He was exhausted after grading all the test papers. His students were actually doing good in his subject which was like a compliment. However, there were still a few of them who seemed like they were not trying hard enough.

Walking back to his place appeared to be a painful chore. He wanted to get a car as he had done enough saving for it, however, on the other hand, he couldn't be really bothered about it as the walk was only twenty minutes.
It gave him time to contemplate and think through his issues. There were not many issues to ponder about, but he still thought it was better to be prepared.

There was another thing that has been bothering him for almost a week. His encounter with Hinata at the bar last weekend. Their conversation was not something interesting or to give a thought about for days, however, Hinata and his vibrant personality has been holed up in Tsukishima's mind for a week now. The thing that had struck him hard was Hinata's acceptance of his cold behaviour. No one has ever really come forward and told him that his spitefulness has intrigued them.

Then again, the boy was drunk. He could've been just spewing nonsense.

Every time Tsukishima would try to push Hinata off his mind, his laughter would ring in Tsukishima's ears. God, he had never been this hung up on a stranger. The university student was undoubtedly adorable, not that the blonde would admit out loud. Secretly, he really cherished that night and that laugh and those cute hair pins.

"Tch." He grimaced at his thoughts, feeling like a pervert.

"Waaah! You are crazy cute!"

Tsukishima's heart quickened upon hearing the familiar voice. It was really out of his nature. Without realizing, he took quick steps towards the junction of the road and peeked a bit to confirm his suspicions.

It was indeed him.

The redhead was crouched down with his back to Tsukishima and was most likely conversing with some stray animal. His hair was as unruly as ever, swinging around as he chuckled lightheartedly.

"Oh!" Hinata sounded surprised and it piqued Tsukishima's fancy, thinking what made the boy so enthusiastic. With slow steps, he approached the boy and upon reaching the spot, he found Hinata with a little cat, feeding it a little piece of banana. "You like it?"

For a boy, Hinata's voice was pretty soft and sweet. His voice was like velvet on a red cupcake. Tsukishima wanted to slap himself for his freaky thoughts. When did he start thinking such sappy stuff? It was excruciating.

"That was the last piece, kitty-chan."

Tsukishima found the pet name absurdly cute. Why would one call a stray with an honorific? "Feeding strays isn't the best thing."

Hinata was not expecting a sudden arrival and the unexpected greeting from an all-too-known slow drawl startled him. With a gasp, he looked up and peered at the tall man with fear filled eyes. However, upon seeing who it was, his worry disappeared and a bashful smile took over his face. "You scared me." He accused the blonde in a small voice, standing up quickly. This would be the fourth time for their unforeseen meeting.

"I'm sorry."

Hinata was left to wonder if his apology was even genuine with that smirk. He remembered their last meeting outside the bar. However, he couldn't remember the person's name as he was a bit too drunk than his usual capacity.

Tsukishima raised his eyebrows at the younger bloke, waiting for some reply. Whilst waiting, he took the chance to eye the blue pins that Hinata had on. It matched his blue cardigan. "Cat got your tongue?" He asked in a mocking tone.

"Uh, uh- mister," Hinata was embarrassed. He couldn't help but go pink as he realized he had forgotten the blonde's name. He wondered if he could ask for his name again without offending the person. "No. It is- it is with me only." He muttered softly, sticking his tongue out a tad to show the man.

The action caught Tsukishima off guard. He got a sudden urge to tug at the boy's tongue and reprimand him like one of his students for not knowing such a commotion catchphrase. He cleared his throat and mustered himself a bit to glare at the boy. "I- I uh, I mean, why were you so quiet?"

"Oh?" Hinata exclaimed in a gentle tone, quickly dismissing the silence with a giggle. "I didn't get it!"

Of course, you are quite a himbo. "Mhm," he hummed in acknowledgement. "Answer me then." The boy seemed hesitant, playing with the hem of his sleeves. A couple of times he opened his mouth to speak only for him to close it shut quickly. "What?"

"I 'nt... ber yo' na.."

"Use clear words, not gibberish." Tsukishima scolded him, looking annoyed.

"I don't remember your name."

Tsukishima's lips formed an 'o' as he registered the cause of his hesitation. Pushing aside his ego and slight hurt he was feeling, he decided to introduce himself again. "Tsukishima Kei."

"Ah!" The sudden loud exclamation made Tsukishima flinch. "I remember, I remember it now!" Hinata squealed happily, clapping his hands and hopping lightly simultaneously. "Nice to see you again, Tsukishima-san!" He waved his hand cutely at the older man and grinned.

This person was exceptionally adorable.

"I wish I could say the same." Tsukishima could not take his eyes off the cute pins. They just made the boy even more appealing. "Don't feed the strays."

"Hah?! Why!" Hinata pulled an offended expression and huffed. "Tsukishima-san, please don't say stuff that might offend kitty-chan!"

Kitty-chan... This boy was anything but typical.

Before he could comprehend the situation, Hinata had brought the little cat right in front of Tsukishima's face, tittering happily.

"Say hi to kitty-chan, Tsukishima-san!"

The blonde flinched back with a disgusted face. "Get that out of my face!"

Hinata tilted his head and frowned. "Bleh!" He stuck his tongue out at Tsukishima in a mocking way and cuddled the cat to his chest. "Tsukishima-san, you don't have to be so mean. Kitty-chan doesn't like you either." In order to make the tall man feel bad, he turned a little away from him and started muttering incoherent things to the little creature.

Usually if someone were to ever act like a brat or stupidly, Tsukishima would have simply walked away without giving the person a single speck of attention. However, right now he just couldn't move an inch from his place, but found himself hesitantly reaching his hand out.

"J... Just a bit.."

Please, what is wrong with me!

end.

I pre-write the stuff and then while editing I find cringe plot lines and make a dozen of changes. I still find a lot of it cliché as heck. Pls (////)

mood: miffed af.