Black Smoke

Silver

Waking up, your body jolted forward as you remembered last night's events. Glancing around the room it appeared to be empty, why? Rika was supposed to be here and as you got up to search for her you pulled your blanket off. You swung your legs over the side of the bed and as you glanced down at the floor you saw that all of the cuts and bruises from yesterday had vanished.

"Rika- Rika?" You called out.

     To no avail, the house remained quiet. So you slipped on your robe which was harshly discarded on your bedroom floor and ventured down the stairs, through your house. All the rooms were void of another person and Rika had seemingly vanished. The sun was fairly high and assumed you must have slept in, thinking about last night promptly reminded you of the plans you made for today.

     Rika lingered on your mind for a moment, would she come back again after yesterday and what relationship could she possibly want with you? Such questions were better saved for later especially because of the company you would soon have over. As you prepared for the day and pulled on a knitted gray sweater you tried to think of what to say to Okkotsu. You had so many questions for him but most of the ones that plagued your mind now were completely inappropriate to ask a near stranger like him.

     Cleaning around the house made time fly by and before you knew there was a knock at your door. Peering through your doors small viewing hole you saw a pair of dark blue eyes and dark ruffled hair, the boy innocently smiled in waiting. Naturally you twisted your lock open and greeted the young man.

"Yuta! Please come in, did you make it here okay?" You asked.

The boy smiled and nodded. "It's good to see you."

     Yuta slowly stepped into your home as you made your way into the kitchen. The young man followed as you offered him a chair and politely made awkward small talk.

"So you said you just moved here, where did you move from?" You asked.

"I was actually living in Morocco before I came here." Yuta said, laughing slightly. The boy's eyes  seemed to light up and he looked a little lost in reminiscing. Yuta caught himself and replied again. "However, I lived in Tokyo before that."

"Tell me all about it!" You enthusiastically egged him on and encouraged. "I'll make us tea, do you like strawberries?" You questioned.

"I love strawberries, need any help?"

     You shook your head side to side and got right to preparing the tea. Yuta continued with little bits of information on his previous homes.

"Morocco wasn't much of a home, I was mostly there to train so I had to put in a lot of work. I also never got out much in Tokyo, but the culture of Morocco was actually a really good distraction from training when I wasn't working!" The boy trailed on with little tidbits of the differences of weather and environment as you washed strawberries.

     The kettle screeched and you poured the water over two mugs. Each had a small metal pouch containing your own prideful blend of sweet flowers and green tea leaves. You sliced each strawberry into fourths and took everything to the table next to Okkotsu. You happily listened as he slowly switched the conversation back onto you.

"So, you understandably have questions for me."

"Yeah, it's hard to put into words." You replied.

"It's okay, take your time." Yuta said, flashing a soft smile and head tilt.

     You took the young man's advice and pondered for a while. You knew cursed spirits came from peoples built up emotion but what were they capable of? They could interact with the physical world and could really exist, harm, and ... love? You took a deep breath and looked over at Yuta.