Three Dollars and a Singular Cent

SIMP

“Can you-”

“No.” You cut Alice off. “I don’t want to.”

“I didn’t even get the chance to speak yet..!” Alice sat on the couch opposite you.

“You’re gonna ask me to get something from the store? After what we witnessed the other day? Alice, bro, that guy is gonna kill me if he sees me in public again.”

“That’s not funny.” Alice deadpanned. “I can go with you.”

“What do you even need?”

“Something to fill the empty void.”

“We still have brownies.”

Alice quickly scrambled off the couch into the kitchen, not saying anything more. You smiled to yourself at how funny he was.

Then, you felt your phone vibrate. You pulled it out of your pocket to see who was calling you, expecting a spam number.

It was Shin. You remembered, then, that he’d gone back to work today. You silently prayed that it was a random call, and he was just bored.

That, it was not.

“Objection, hearsay.” You greeted him with because you thought that’d be funny.

“P-Pardon?” Shin said.

“What’s up? Are you okay? You’re still at work, right?” You thought it was kind of weird how close you’d gotten to the local 7-Eleven cashier, but did that matter to you? No. Over his little work break, you guys talked a lot, and it turned your little mystery crush into… maybe something more? You found his comedic comments to be endearing. He told you about his little sister, whom he loved dearly but hardly ever got to see due to his shitty relationship with their parents. The last time he’d seen her, he said, was three years ago — when he was 21.

He told you about how he wanted to go to university (or at least a community college) to study psychology. He’d been interested in how hereditary mental illnesses work. He said that he’d gotten the chance to learn a bit about it before graduating high school, but didn’t elaborate on that. Simply stating that, No, he didn’t take any psychology electives, as that wasn’t available at the school he went to. Whatever that meant.

“Uhm, y-yeah? I think I am… right now.” He was quieter than when he first spoke to you.

“What do you mean?”

“S-So, uhm, I think that… it might be here.” He said it so quietly that you hardly heard him.

“I-It? Oh! You mean-“

“Yeah,” He cut you off. “Like… he’s not in the building but this black car pulled up an hour ago and the driver hasn’t come in or left, so I’m… worried. I’m not sure if he, like, tried showing up here while I was gone and has just been appearing every day since.”

You were silent for a moment as you remembered what had happened on Friday. “I know he showed up on Friday,” You said, probably not comforting him at all.

“What do you mean?”

You recalled that… interesting experience, describing it to Shin.

“What a freak.” He said.

“Yeah, I know. I’m just glad that Al-“

“Y/N!!!!!!” Alice screamed, sliding into the living room with his socks. “I ate all of the brownies.”

You gaped at him. “Is that your roommate?” Shin questioned.

“…Yeah.” You said slowly. “Alice, I’m on the phone.”

“With who?”

“Uhm, S-Shin?”

“The cashier? Hey, lemme say something to him real quick.”

“No, I don’t think you need to.”

“Your friend is fucking weird, Shin Tsukimi!!!” He shouted, turned, and ran upstairs to his room.

“Did you hear that?” You rubbed the side of your head.

“Who couldn’t, honestly? He’s not wrong… well, I mean, he’s wrong about Hiyori being my friend… Ah, right, back to Hiyori. So, as I said, I’m worried that he’s waiting for me to leave, and he might, like, attack me on my way home, because I walk to and from work. Could you… drive me home? I wouldn’t ask you if I weren’t terribly afraid.”

“Ah- of course!” You stood up from the couch but immediately sat back down, “Oh, but… mmm. That might not work out too well. As much as I’d love to help you, if Hiyori saw me with you, I think he’d fucking deck me. I insisted that I didn’t know you on Friday. Oh! But… Okay, I have an idea.”

You pulled into the parking lot of the 7-Eleven, and Reko unbuckled her seatbelt. “Grab the kid, shove him in the car, and we’ll drive him home?”

“Yeah, but maybe, don’t… grab him? And don’t shove him. Make it quick though. Maybe try to hide his eccentric hair.”

Reko slammed the car door after you finished talking, rushing into the store. You sat in silence for a moment, praying to whatever being that Hiyori wouldn’t notice Shin leaving and try to follow you.

“Get in the back, man.” The passenger door opened. Both Reko and Shin quickly slid into your car.

“Seat Belts.” You said, immediately backing out and not giving them a single moment to do so. You were scared of this Hiyori bitch.

“T-Thank you, so much, both of you.” Shin stammered.

“Of course, Shin. Like I said, I’ll help you out anytime.”

“SIMP!” Reko shouted, making you both flinch.

“Shut the fuck up.” You elbowed her.

“Hey! Hands on the wheel, simp.” You groaned.

Shin was quiet the rest of the drive to his apartment.

When you arrived at his apartment, you got out of the car with him, leaving Reko in the passenger seat, with only the sound of the car beeping due to the open driver’s door. She might go feral.

“Are you all right?” You asked him.

He pulled on his beanie, trying to hide, “I t-think… I am.”

“You can call me, you know?”

“I-I know. That’s why I… I did that earlier.” He seemed a bit *lip smack* NERVOUS.

And oh my god, he’s cute. You physically had to restrain yourself from hugging him or something else more intimate. It would be taking advantage of the vulnerable state he’s in, and that’s the last thing you’d want to do since he’s becoming so important to you.

You could feel warmth spreading to your face. “Stay safe.” You said rigidly, spinning and hurrying back into your car.

“I’M LOSING MY FUCKING MIND WHY DIDN’T YOU CLOSE THE FUCKING DOOR?” Reko shouted, rocking back and forth when you got back in the car. Shin had been shocked by your sudden departure, but he’d turned and went on his way to his apartment anyway.

“Roll down your window.” Reko did as told, not asking questions. “Call me as soon as anything feels off, okay?!”

Shin’s head snapped to face you, and he gave a weak thumbs-up as an answer, turning and hurrying back on his way inside.

“Simp.”

“Not.”

“Siiiimp, Alice is gonna make fun of you with me, you’re a simp!”

“Where’s Nao, Reko?”

“Shut up.”

~*~

1149 words