one second earlier // tomokazu

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the night was still young in the warmly lit streets of inazuma city. the vendors yelled out on top of their lungs, advertising their most recently invented snacks ranging both in color and shape. not to mention the smell. 

kazuha always had a sweet tooth and lost every bit of his composure as soon as someone offered him a sugary treat. of course, he was well aware of the consequences sugar had on his body. it made him weaker and lazier, slowing down both his movements and his focus. so naturally, there had to be someone to use the right opportunity to bully him while he stayed in his sugar crash state.

coincidentally, the very person who would do that tended to be the one feeding him snacks in the first place. and more so coincidentally, it happened to be the human gifted the title of kazuha's best friend.

or rather, his only friend.

in this moment, there was a certain tension to the air. what with the vision hunt decree announced a few days before, both of them had to hide their gems underneath the clothing. but although the new decree was ruthlessly unfair, it didn't do much to the people of inazuma. perhaps it was because the majority of them never had a vision to begin with. only the scarce ones with ambitions brighter than the flames were subdued into silence. 

people had yet to ask questions about the initial goal hidden behind the decree. right now, no one understood possible consequences. to the people crowding the streets, what mattered was not elemental powers and endless dreams. to them, perhaps the only important thing was getting their stomachs full and hearts satisfied.

for this night only, both kazuha and his friend decided to taste the easier life. 

holding the glass in one hand, kazuha stared suspiciously into the amber liquid. they sat at the table in the very corner of a rooftop terrace surrounded by curtains and fragnant plants. it was a rather expensive place. definitely one where cats were not allowed, but it didn't seem to bother his companion too much. as soon as a white cat's head poked out from between his clothes, kazuha sent him a deadly glare before quickly refocusing on the glass; not his fault that tomo's chest flashed right before his eyes. not his fault that he couldn't stand the sight without getting hot in the face. after all, he could blame it on the alcohol. 

but he still hasn't taken a single sip. 

"if they catch you, i will not be the one paying for all of this," kazuha announced calmly. before them, their table was filled with various plates filled with various snacks, both sweet and salty. there were fruit, nuts, buns and this godforsaken bottle of suspicious liquor. in fact, kazuha knew deep down that none of them would be financially able to pay for this, but since they planned to leave inazuma the very next day... might as well deserve the unpleasant goodbye.

tomo poked the cat back into his robes and simply shrugged, "at least to make it worth the deal, perhaps you should finally drink it."

kazuha pursed his lips. just smelling the alcohol was nearly driving him down the rooftop. he would not stand a single sip, not to mention the whole glass, not to even think about the bottle. seeing his visible struggles, tomo snorted and reached his hand out. as he took the glass, his fingers brushed against kazuha's. kazuha only hoped tomo couldn't hear how his heart nearly jumped out of his chest at the touch. 

yeah... kazuha had a problem. it was sitting right next to him and drinking the amber liquid leisurely, in this loose red haori of his, with this gap on the chest, staring around with those full bright eyes and a lazy smile. this problem bothered him since forever, but he knew how to cope. only recently did all the old coping methods fail him and leave vulnerable to the horrible truth unwrapping itself right before his eyes.