Red Strings ¦¦ Chishiya Shuntarou x OC

Tenth String

The day was finally coming to an end, and Kurenai shut her laptop off, stretching her arms up in the air. She was no stranger to working in front of the computer all day long, though it had been a while since she had to. Every now and then, she had to type up a proposal or two for Aoi but those never took longer than an hour or two in one sitting.

She looked at the time on her phone. Almost dinner.

Taking her laptop with her, Kurenai walked out into the hallway searching for a certain blonde. While she did not see him, she did see Honoka by the nurse station. As she approached Honoka, Kurenai thought she could have a little fun with her.

"Honoka-chan, have you seen Shuntarou?"

Instantly, she was met with a scowl.

In all honesty, Honoka's hostility was just entertainment for Kurenai. She had no intentions to fight Honoka for Chishiya, because there was no competition there. If Kurenai was to give her all, she would not stand a chance to even talk to him. It was pitiful, almost, how Honoka saw Kurenai as a rival when she never stood a chance even without her existence.

"No, I have not."

"Did I do something wrong, Honoka-chan?" Kurenai asked, sounding as innocent as she could. "I feel like I may have offended you somehow. If so, please tell me. I'll do my best to make it right."

A little caught off guard, Honoka was dumbfounded.

She had not been subtle with her hostility, Honoka knew. But up until this point, Kurenai did not seem to care. Or more like, Honoka was not worth her time to bother with. Now that she was called out, however, she was at a loss. Kurenai was still their benefactor, and she would be working here for a period of time. It would be wiser to get on her good side.

"I...guess not."

"Hm, alright then," Kurenai smiled. "Because I'd hate to find out later that you have something against me. I sure hope we can be friends."

Somehow, her words were chilling. The way she was smiling too.

It was as if Kurenai was warning her. Or threatening her.

"Shuntarou!"

Spotting Chishiya down the hallway, Kurenai left Honoka thinking over what she just said. The fun was watching as Honoka struggled to understand, and the internal conflict that her words would bring her.

"You're awfully cheerful for someone who just did a full day of work," Chishiya said. Even though he said so, her smile was incredibly infectious. He could not help but smile back. "How can I help you, Miss Chuya?"

"I told you to call me Kurenai." She showed him her phone, specifically pointing to the time. "It's dinner time. When is your shift ending? Shall we eat together?"

"Shouldn't you be eating with your...boyfriend?"

"First of all, he's not my boyfriend," Kurenai stated, her tone of voice suddenly serious though she was quick to bounce back to her usual cheeky self. "And why would I eat with him when I could eat with you? Hm...or maybe, I can eat you?"

"Unfortunately, I am unavailable for both options. I'm on the night shift. I can head out for dinner, but not too far away from the hospital."

"That's alright, I know a fantastic place."

--

Sitting in a fast food restaurant just two streets away from the hospital, Chishiya was more surprised at the fact that Kurenai would come to a place like this, than the fact that she called this a 'fantastic place' to bring him to dinner.

He knew it was stereotypical to think that someone with her status in society would never step foot in a fast food restaurant, let alone eat there. Though, the type of aura Kurenai gave practically screamed stereotype. After all, she wore yet another expensive dress with a pair of expensive shoes that one would only see on a celebrity at their premiere to a typical work day.

"Isn't it so fascinating how they could make food so quickly here?" Kurenai grinned. She was like a child discovering cartoons on the TV for the first time. "You order, and minutes later, you get your order!"

"Yes, that is the whole point of a fast food restaurant. Hence...fast food restaurant."

Kurenai stuck her tongue out at his teasing, picking up her burger. Ever since Kuina brought her here last time, she had been craving the food. She asked Ayako to make her a burger after, and although it was delicious, it just did not taste the same.

Was it ambiance? Could it be as simple as...because it was simple?

"May I ask you a question?" Chishiya asked, unwrapping his own burger. Kurenai nodded, indicating for him to continue. "Why do you put up with that man? Morita, was it? You obviously do not like him."

"I could ask you the same thing about cute little Honoka-chan."

Of course Chishiya knew about Honoka's feelings for him; she was rather obvious from the beginning. He chose not to acknowledge it because he did not want her to think that she had a chance. He was not interested in her at all. He could reject her straight out, and that would be something he would do two years ago. But they had to work together and see each other every day, why should he make things awkward?

Honestly, he thought by now she would have gotten the clue.

"Sometimes, there are things in life we have to do even if we don't like it." Staring at her burger, Kurenai sighed. "Morita Corporations is a long time partner of our company. They have a son, and I'm the only daughter. Go figure. Doesn't matter that I don't like it, because it's more important to preserve the relationship between the two companies."

"I thought arranged marriage was just an overused plot in the dramas."

"It's more common than you think. My parents had an arranged marriage."

"I suppose I understand. My parents got married because of mutual benefits, and they ended up having me because...well, I guess because it just makes them seem like a normal family."

"We're pretty similar then," Kurenai smiled.

Reaching across the table with one hand, Chishiya wiped sauce from the corner of her lips with his thumb. A small gesture, but it was enough to bring a little colour to Kurenai's cheeks. This was a first for her.

"Let me ask you another question. Do you think there's a place after death?"

"You mean like heaven?"

"More like a limbo."

As she chewed, Kurenai was deep in thoughts. She was never a religious person, nor was she philosophical. Whenever debates like whether or not heaven existed came up, she had no interest in participating. Ever since the meteorite, however, she thought a little differently.

When she was in a coma, she felt as if she was in another place. A place just like Tokyo, except it was empty. Sometimes, something would trigger a memory in her but Kurenai would be confused because it was not a memory she remembered having. Almost like she was confusing her dreams with her memories.

Scientifically, some would say that after a trauma like that, the brain would make up a place like heaven to protect the person. It would induce a dream-like state so they were not focused on the trauma.

"You know...when I was in a coma after the meteorite disaster, I felt like I was in a different place," she said. "And I had to fight to survive."

"Same. I survived that too, and I also felt as if I was in another place. Almost like...another dimension."

"Maybe we were in the same place," Kurenai smiled. "Comforting to think that maybe we met in that place."