Center of the Sunlit Sea || Chisaki Kai/Overhaul x Shirabe Mariya(OC)

3. Window Shopping

3780 words

White sheets on a white mattress in front of a white wall. The only decoration that suggested the bedroom belonged to a child was the well-loved stuffed bear guarding the pillow. The adult-sized dresser opposite the bed had five large drawers unoccupied, all of her clothes fitting into the sixth with space to spare and the closet sitting empty. At least the window allowed ample sunshine to stream in during the morning. When Eri had pulled Shirabe through the door right before her bed time, asking for help deciding on a cute pair of pajamas, the woman was genuinely stunned by what she saw.

The feeling only grew heavier when she saw there were only two sets to pick from. The old boss had explained how the girl came to live with them, but she didn't realize just how bad it must have been; it looked like she was literally left on their doorstep with a duffel bag and her teddy bear. She quickly replaced the saddened look on her face with a warm smile and knelt down to help Eri get dressed while she explained very seriously that the unicorns on her pants liked to eat cotton candy and their magic made her fly in her dreams. Shirabe grinned, suddenly picking her up and tossing her, shrieking with laughter, onto the bed.

"Like that?" The woman asked as the girl rolled to a stop, still giggling. Once she was all tucked in with her arms wrapped tightly around her bear, she went quiet as Shirabe straightened out the blanket.

"Mari?" she whispered, drawing the woman out of her thoughts. She hummed in reply. "Are you gonna stay?" As if her heart didn't hurt enough, the simple question asked in such a shaky voice nearly tore it in half. The longer she spent around the girl, the more she understood about how the uncertain circumstances were probably affecting her.

"I'll stay for as long as I'm needed, sweetpea. And we'll get to have a bunch of fun while I'm here, okay?" That seemed to satisfy the small girl from how she smiled sleepily and nuzzled deeper into her pillow. Shirabe wanted to scream from how adorable the sight was, but held herself back and dropped a goodnight kiss on the top of her head. "Now get some sleep, we're going to be busy tomorrow." After brushing a few strands of hair away from her face and behind her horn, she waited until her face relaxed to pull away and quietly step out of the room. The woman let out a long breath through her nose and leaned her forehead against the door. Her hand not holding the knob slowly reached up to her neck, brushing past smooth, alabaster skin and satin waves of hair.

Following the curve of her upper spine, running from under her hairline down her nape to just above her shoulders, she traced the faint line of scar tissue with her middle finger. It was the kind of scar people would call beautiful: almost perfectly straight and thin enough where they didn't have to think too long about the pain caused by what was once underneath. If they did, they might get uncomfortable and who would want that? As if she was still there, her eyes watered like they did from the burning smell of strong antiseptic that was her only companion during her long days in urgent care. She didn't cry out of sadness nor fear, just that horrid scent that stuck to her skin. Everything else be damned if Eri had to experience even a fraction of the same kind of loneliness any longer, she swore to herself as she floated down the stairs.

A cloud of frustration formed around her, frustration towards the situation as a whole and the one person responsible for it. She sighed again, composing herself and forcing the ugly feeling down. Making her way back to the living room, the old pendulum wall clock keeping diligent watch over the hallway showed it wasn't even 8 o'clock, she stopped short of the open door. After a moment of contemplation, she continued on down the hall until she reached the very end where there stood a western-style door left slightly ajar.

Slowly pushing it open and knocking gently on the jamb, she spotted Pops sitting at a large mahogany desk surrounded by tightly packed bookshelves of the same material, reading pensively through a stack of papers. His thoughtful expression was illuminated by the soft glow of a small, antique desk lamp; even with the group's limited activity, administrative matters hardly ceased. The room served as a home office for when he needed a less noisy environment than the Hassaikai's headquarters or to entertain particularly important guests.