The Winners Take It All | Chishiya [English]

A piece of warmth

I wasn't expecting this when I got home.

There were two guys sitting on the big sofa.

Chishiya and Obiki.

"Home too, Ayuna-chan?" Hinata teased me and I stuck my tongue out at her. The others had simply left me alone.

"Very funny," I replied and went into the kitchen where I put the bag with the groceries. After visiting Sarumi-chan, I would have been off work long ago, which is why I didn't find anyone else - they had all left after the end of their shift.

I then decided to buy a few more things before I went back to the shared apartment.

And I had been looking forward to a relaxing bath...

"You're still whole," the voice behind me made me jump and I turned around in a flash.

Bad decision...

Suddenly our faces were very close to each other. I could practically feel his breath on my skin. The seconds seemed to last forever; my heart was pounding in my throat.

Damn, what was wrong with me?

"Mmh, I find that reaction extremely interesting," the sentence sent a shiver down my spine.

Hadn't he said that before? But when?

I blinked. His face was still dangerously close to mine. I managed to get myself out of the sticky situation by taking a step to the side, putting my hand on the counter and... I was tipping over?!

Oh no, was that that weird cliche scene from a drama? Where the female lead fell on her face and the male main character was salvation in person?

A hand grabbed my arm and pulled me back to balance.

Oh man, the man had reflexes!

"Quick note, you should put your hand on the counter if you want to support yourself," his grin burned itself into my memory.

"I know," I replied simply, not having the strength to argue with him further. He would win anyway.

I slowly started distributing the food to the right places. He watched me with interest, and sometimes I had the feeling that he was analyzing my physique.

"What about 205?" he finally wanted to know, and I stopped my movement. Then I looked at him.

"She has a name," I reminded him, and he frowned briefly.

"I know, Hayashi-san," was he mad? I threw the packets of instant noodles into the bottom drawer.

"I left the decision to her," I then told him, "Now it's up to her whether she wants help or not." He didn't seem to understand what I meant, but I didn't care right now.

I left the kitchen and he seemed to follow me as I headed for my room. Since I was sure he had more questions, I held my door open for him and he walked in before making himself comfortable in the desk chair.

I grabbed some fresh clothes, put them on the bed and then sat down on my big bean bag chair.

"Go ahead, what's on your mind?" I asked, noticing his thoughtful look. He didn't answer, so I didn't want to probe any further.

Instead, we remained silent. It even got to the point of becoming embarrassing.

"Hayashi Ayuna...", goosebumps ran down my spine when he said my full name.

"Yes?" my voice sounded squeaky. I didn't know what was going on inside me again, it was such an unfamiliar but familiar feeling.

"Why are you driving me crazy?"

My eyes widened a little. He... what?!

What was happening here... this was a direction I didn't expect.

"What do you mean?" I wanted to know quietly, and he looked into my eyes. There they were again, the beautiful pupils...

"It's on the tip of my tongue, I know we've met before... It's like I've known you for a damn long time..." he mused, "You... I can't describe it. It's a strange feeling I get when I see you."

He said what was on my mind. This was no longer a coincidence, I wasn't going crazy, no, it was reality - the truth.

"Chishiya Shuntaro."

We looked at each other again and he seemed a little taken aback.

"I'm sure...we know each other from somewhere."

We had discussed it before, but now... now I was 100% sure.

We remained silent, every now and then our eyes met.

I felt like neither of us knew what to say.

Finally, he got up and left my room. I stayed back and stared at the desk chair where he had just been sitting.

What a strange, far-fetched conversation.

But yeah... I noticed it, I just had never really put the characters together. The constant teasing, the looks, the realization in his eyes... The simple conversations...

It had all been too easy considering we had only known each other for a short time.

He had noticed it; he had driven himself crazy with it.

Not just him, but me too.

Only now did I notice the warmth he left when he was near me.

It was this cozy, pleasant warmth in which you wanted to hide.

I managed to interrupt my flow of thoughts and preferred to use my strength to change my clothes. My stuffy everyday clothes were swapped for airy, simple ones in which I immediately felt much more comfortable.

Then I reached for my laptop, my iPad, and some writing utensils. The two men were probably here so that we could start our paperwork.

I made a stop in the kitchen, where I made a pot of tea and carried it and five mugs into the living room.

Despite the confusion, my instinct was right.

Ann sat comfortably on one of the armchairs and was watching a series on her Mac Book. The other three were engrossed in their notes.

I put my things down and placed her cup in front of the forensic specialist. She smiled gratefully at me, and I nodded at her before plopping down on the floor next to Hinata. She looked up briefly, frowned questioningly, but then went back to her report.

I also opened my laptop and tried to concentrate on my daily log, but my eyes kept straying to the blonde-haired young man.

I kept catching myself admiring his face and torso.

Thank you Chishiya, you totally threw me off track.

The next few days would be fun...