𝐎𝐔𝐓 𝐎𝐅 𝐑𝐄𝐀𝐂𝐇; 𝑲.𝑻𝑨𝑵𝑱𝑰𝑹𝑶 [✓]

change;

[y/n] stayed silent as she took in what tanjiro had just said.

does he know? of course he does. why else would he ask such a question?

should i tell him the truth? the girl didn't know what to do.

perhaps it is time for her to break the habit of lying and start being honest.

"yes, i did." was what she wanted to say.

she wanted to tell tanjiro about the time she met this flame pillar, rengoku kyojuro. it was the right thing to do after all, that man clearly meant a lot to tanjiro. so she should be honest, and tell him...

"i'm sorry to hear that," [y/n] finally gave her reply.

bad habits are hard to break.

"but, what makes you think i have seen him?" she tried to keep her voice steady and calm as she studied the boys' expression.

tanjiro's eyes met hers for a split second before he averted his gaze back to the grass beneath him. he looked upset.

"when i looked through your book that day," tanjiro started. "i saw a pair of familiar names that belonged to people who died a while ago..." a light breeze blew past their frames as the boy finished speaking.

[y/n] parted her lips to give him a reply,  but no words came out. she stopped herself from telling another unnecessary lie.

"i..." she sighed. "yes, i did meet him."

finally, tanjiro shifted his gaze away from the grass. when his eyes met hers, she noticed how glossy they were. the boy quickly blinked his tears away, not giving them the chance to escape.

"was he..." his grip on the flame pillars' flame shaped guard tightened.

"don't worry, rengoku-san died with no regrets. he's okay."

"i see. that's good. i'm really glad..." tanjiro's voice wavered towards the end as he held the guard against his chest, eyes squeezed shut to prevent any tears from flowing.

[y/n] was at a loss for words. unfortunately, she was never the best at comforting people. even now, as she watched the boy in front of her cry, all she could do was give him silence.

i should apologise. the girl thought. for what? she didn't know. she just had a feeling that an apology should be given.

"tanjiro?" she spoke softly, not wanting to disturb him any further.

the boy opened his eyes, using a hand to wipe away his tears. they weren't tears of sadness, he thinks. actually, he had no idea why he was even crying. heat rushed to his cheeks, he quickly kept the item he was holding on to before regaining his composure.

"i'm sorry--" their voices interlaced with one another as they both apologised.

surprised, [y/n] stopped herself from continuing.

tanjiro, confused as to why the girl was apologising, asked, "what are you saying sorry for?"

"oh! uhm," the girl hesitated. "it's just... i kept on lying to you... i know it's wrong and honestly, i have no idea why i kept doing it, i'm really sorry."

ever since [y/n] was young, she would always get in all kinds of trouble. soon, she learnt that she could avoid facing certain consequences by lying. the lies she told kept her safe. in fact, it was the only thing she could depend on. of course, there was her older brother, but when she grew older, she realised she no longer knew him the way she used to. he had turned into a monster.

"it's okay. you weren't trying to hurt me with those lies, i get it." the boy flashed her a closed eye smile, washing her worries away.

another breeze blew past them, this time stronger and colder. "shall we head in? it's getting a bit too cold for my liking," [y/n] returned his smile with a small one. "i can make us some hot tea, we can sit down and continue talking," she continued. she liked talking to tanjiro. but she remembered that he did not belong here, unlike her, he has a place to go back to.

"only if you want to, of course!" she quickly added.

"that'd be nice," tanjiro replied. for some reason, he felt there was no need to return right now. what he wanted was to spend more time with [y/n].

after making their way back into the small house, [y/n] brewed two cups of tea, setting them down on the kitchen table. she took a seat across from tanjiro, ready to continue their conversation.

[y/n] knew the kind of questions he was going to ask her. she told herself that she would answer them honestly.

the [h/c] hair girl was disappointed in herself for the way she had been behaving. even after death, she was still the same girl as before. dishonest and always afraid, never taking responsibility for her own actions, only knowing how to run away from it. she hated it and swore to change, but it was harder than she thought.

this place she is stuck in, what she once referred to as paradise soon turned into a nightmare as days passed. she had so much time on her hands, yet so little to do. it was driving her insane. being left here alone with just her thoughts and feelings to keep her company was truly suffocating, she felt sick.

however, as she watched the boy in front of her, she felt like she could finally breathe again. perhaps for him, she will change.

it took a while for the boy to pick a question to ask, and when the words finally left his lips, it felt like they were meeting for the first time again.

"who are you?"

it is a question he had already asked the girl in front of him, and one she already answered. only this time, she will tell the truth.

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DID YOU ALL SO DIRTY FOR DISAPPEARING LIKE THAT IM SO SORRY 😭🙏