Butterflies? Or something telling me to run away? || GiyuShino

Chapter 15 | Better this way

A/N: I feel like you guys might've been a bit disappointed about how the story played out last chapter, so I thought I'd provide a small explanation to you guys before the start of this chapter. Personally, I felt that it was clear in the manga that Tomioka had some sort of inferiority complex, he probably felt lesser than the other Pillars due to various reasons; I've also written in previous chapters that he thinks that he couldn't love due to his responsibilities as a Pillar. So I believe that realistically, he has to have some time to get over some of his internal struggles before he decides that he can be with her after all 😊

Also, don't forget that he literally just found out about her feelings towards him - I would like to think he's also in a bit of shock and denial haha!

That's just my take on their relationship, but I also believe that once he gets over his struggles, they can be happily together soooo.

Anyway, enjoy the chapter!

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It was time to give up, wasn't it?

Perhaps it was simply better this way.

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Alone, walking slowly and mindlessly along the long beaches of this sea. Kocho wondered how things had come to this after she had woken up and recovered from her fight with the Upper Moon, she didn't even hear from Tomioka himself that he had single handedly defeated the demon who killed her sister.

Ever since accidentally letting her feelings towards Tomioka slip, Kocho realised that he had started to avoid her. Living next door meant that they often saw each other outside of missions, but now he seemed to have completely disappeared.

Only every now and then, when Kocho stayed up to study for something or became too engrossed in an experiment to notice how late it already was, would she catch a glimpse of Tomioka at his door coming back from a mission while she was walking back upstairs to her room.

They would look at each other, and in the few seconds that their eyes met, she thought she saw traces of the Tomioka she used to know; a shadow of their former relationship.

And then he would coldly, silently remove his gaze, open his door and leave.

She would rather he be angry at her, laugh at her for thinking such thoughts – anything. It hurt her much more to see him ignore and act indifferent towards her.

Gently touching the door to his room, she thought of all memories they had together. She would often walk up to his door and raise her hand to knock, but each time she would give up midway and just leave.

Why talk to someone who didn't want to be bothered, she would always tell herself.

Maybe because she had thoroughly prepared herself for this scenario, the tears she expected never came even though she wanted to cry.

At the end of the day, their relationship still broke into pieces huh.

❀❀❀

The other day she had lunch with Mitsuri, the lovely girl asked her a question.

"Shinobu-chan, did you and Tomioka-san have a fight?" Her lively eyes showed signs of concern.

"Hm? No, why do you ask?" Kocho replied with her well-practiced smile. They didn't fight, they only reverted back to their most original, stranger-like relationship. What did two strangers have to fight about?

"Because~ I haven't seen you two together in so long! For the last few months you two were pretty much joined at the hip, whenever we saw one of you we would see the other somewhere close by" Mitsuri pouted, she was so looking forward to her ship sailing and going on that double date after all.