Gifts and roses..-*

Chapter 13 - next.

The two stood in silence for a few moments, the lively noise of the festival filling the quiet. Laughter, drums, and the chatter of festivalgoers swirled around them, somehow extenuating the awkward stillness between the two.

Sanemi shifted his weight from one foot to the other, glancing around at the bustling crowd. He considered saying something, but the words seemed to catch in his throat as he realised he didn't know what to say. Giyuu, for his part, stared straight at the ground, his expression as unreadable as ever. He appeared perfectly content to stand there in silence, seemingly unbothered by the awkwardness that Sanemi could feel almost prickling on his skin.

Sanemi scuffed his shoe against the ground, the quiet between them growing heavier with each passing second. He wasn't used to this strange, uncomfortable tension. He hardly ever found himself feeling awkward- and he wasn't sure if it was because of the festival or because of Tomioka.

Sanemi's gaze wandered to Giyuu's outfit- a dark red yukata. For a moment, he found himself admiring it. "It suits you," he blurted out before he could stop himself.

Giyuu looked up, a bit startled. "Huh?"

Sanemi gestured toward the yukata, a light blush on his face. "The yukata."

Giyuu's cheeks turned a soft pink, and he turned his gaze away, mumbling, "Yours too... it's nice."

Sanemi sighed, almost reluctantly admitting, "Kanroji forced me to wear it."

Giyuu chuckled, nodding in sympathy. "Same here."

"So she won't stop bothering you, too?" Sanemi raised an eyebrow.

"Yeah," Giyuu replied with a small smile, "but she's nice. I don't mind it"

The conversation trailed off, and there was a small moment where neither of them said anything, until Sanemi cleared his throat "You don't have to stick around with me, you know," He muttered, not quite looking at the other.

Giyuu tilted his head slightly, "You say that like you're a pain to be around."

Waving his hand dismissively, Sanemi replied "Well I don't fucking know, maybe you had plans or something."

Giyuu hesitated for a moment, before responding softly, "No, I'd be happy to explore the festival with you... if you're okay with that."

"Hm." Sanemi huffed, something tightening in his chest. He crossed his arms as he tried to ignore the way his pulse seemed to quicken under Giyuu's steady gaze. He glanced around for a second, feeling a bit out of place before he asked, "So, what do we do? I don't really do festivals."

Giyuu looked up, a bit surprised. "So... you actually don't mind spending it with me?"

Shrugging, Sanemi kept his tone nonchalant. "Why would I?"

Giyuu paused, as if weighing his words carefully, then finally said, "I just thought... never mind... Have you eaten? We can start with getting some food?"

Sanemi gave a small nod. "Sure. That works."

Gesturing for Sanemi to follow, Giyuu made his way through the bustling crowd. "What would you like?" he asked as he glanced back at him.

Sanemi grunted, not really focused on the options. "I'm not picky. Whatever you're getting is fine."

The other hashira raised an eyebrow but didn't comment. "Alright," he said, leading them to a stall, the air thick with the mouthwatering scent of grilled food. Stopping in front of a vendor preparing Takoyaki, Giyuu pointed to the sizzling octopus balls. "What about these?"

Sanemi looked at the Takoyaki, the golden-brown spheres looking more than appealing. He gave a small nod. "Yeah, sure. Those'll do."

Without another word, Giyuu ordered two portions, handing one to Sanemi as the vendor wrapped them up. "Here," he said simply, his tone soft.