Forced Manipulation

Chapter Eight

"And, bam!" Jason exclaimed, setting the last box in the trunk. "That's everything!" He offered his hand to Katsuki for a high five. "Good job!"

Katsuki hesitated, before gently giving Jason a high five. It wasn't like he deserved a high five, for Jason did jack shit except talk about himself and occasionally yell at Katsuki to be careful with the expensive stuff. Needless to say, Katsuki did not like Jason, not one bit.

"So, you're going to like the Battered Yam, Katsuki!" Jason cheered, closing his old apartment door. "I came there when I first moved back to Japan, and my God the food was amazing! I got to get you to try the Katsudon! The spices are immaculate-"

"I'm not hungry." Katsuki lied, hoping that Jason would buy it. "I just want to get back to sleep."

However, as if his body was against him, his stomach rumbled, louder than Katsuki had ever heard before! Katsuki blushed slightly out of embarrassment, pulling the hood over his face.

"Heh, it's five minutes from here, so, we can walk there!" Jason chuckled. He couldn't lie, it hurt him a little that Katsuki didn't want to spend time with him, and would even lie to his face about it. He thought that they had made a significant bond. However, it seemed that their relationship was quite the opposite, Katsuki's hatred for him gave the ash-blonde a dark aura. To be frank, it kind of terrified Jason a little. He knew that over time, hell, even after a meal, maybe he'd warm up to him!

"Fun," Katsuki grumbled, not even trying to hide his sarcasm as he walked away.

"Hey!" Jason called out, running after the ash blonde. "Wait up! Damn, you're fast." He mumbled the last part as he caught up with Katsuki.

"Tch. Just keep walking and show me where it is."

"Will do!"

And with that, the two began their journey to the Battered Yam.

✭✭✭✭

"Aha! Found it!" Jason proudly smiled as he pointed to the tiny building. "See? Doesn't it look nice?"

Katsuki sighed. Jason wasn't wrong. The place looked rather nice, it was just a small, white building that had been through many years of aging and the elements. However, the thing that caught Katsuki's eye was the large, neon orange sign of a yam. Underneath, with large, neon red letters that seemed to illuminate the sky reading;

The Battered Yam! Open seven days a week!

The two walked up to the door, Jason jumping in front to open the door for Katsuki. The ash-blonde didn't even bother to thank Jason as he walked into the restaurant. The restaurant was rather small, most of the seats filled with couples going out on a date, friends going for a bite to eat for fun, hell, he even saw a couple of families celebrating their birthdays. The small, bright red lanterns hung above each table, the beautiful artwork painted on its sides, barely illuminating the small room. The soft music that played in the room was barely audible, engulfed by the loud conversations. Katsuki could barely hear himself think, To be honest, it felt like home to Katsuki! He looked around, the aromatic scent of cherry blossoms, combined with the elegant scent of food made Katsuki's stomach growl with anticipation. Almost immediately, a short, skinny woman with long, charcoal black hair that was tied up neatly in a bun swiftly walked up to the two, a large smile on her face.

"Hello, boys!" The lady gleefully exclaimed, resting her hands on her hips. "How are we today?"

"We're good ma'am!" Jason smiled. "Can we get a table for two?"