Between the pages

Chapter 7 Perfume...

"Y/N"

Your body flinched—your consciousness warping back to reality at the sudden voice that had called you. While you try to regain your bearings, your hazy sight found their focus on the movie playing in the TV right in front of you. You blink a few times and a hand rests on your shoulder providing with a bit of assurance but also a silent gesture asking...

"You good? You've been spacing out since I got here" He was looking into your eyes, worry filled his own as he reluctantly pried his hand away from your shoulder. His tone made room for a hint of teasing but overall it was laced with concern

"I'm alright-" Your response was short, distant, and it seemed like you were in a daze. He knew you were lying the moment you avoided eye-contact with him and turned back to the playing scenes—He could tell you were brushing it off...

Yet he chose not to pry for an honest answer—He knew that he wasn't gonna get an answer from you. Instead he tried for a different approach: speaking in a quiet, calm reassuring tone: "You know, if you're not feeling well we can always do this another time—"

"U-uh no! I just—didn't get some sleep last night"

The words slipped from you like sand running in-between the cracks of your fingers. It was something minor so you didn't really plan on telling him but in the end—it slipped out. 

His gaze flickered away from lazily looking at the TV to return to you, his eyebrow raised slightly in question as he picked up the remote to pause the playing movie in the background. The words hanging in the air and for the first time—The silence you shared wasn't comforting...

His mind scrambled to process what you had just said... "You didn't sleep?"

"I couldn't fall asleep-"

"Why?"

You ponder on his question for a few seconds trying to think of any reply that would lead the tense atmosphere away—In the end you released a sigh and pull your knees against your chest, arms tightly hugging them as you buried you face halfway into your arms... "I don't know"

He returned your sigh with one of his own. Giyu placed the remote back on the table before he himself started to wander through possible reasons of why you had not been able to sleep.

"I'll be alriiiight! Don't worry, it's just one night," you replied with a smile, already settling back into a relaxed position. Your tone was playful and reassuring, as if the moment didn't matter at all.

—-----------—

"Still didn't sleep properly last night?" He asks after settling down on the chair that was across yours.

"Nope.." You responded blankly that had shortly been followed by a tired grumble—betraying the exhaustion you were trying to mask.

It's been three straight days since you started having trouble sleeping. During those three days, you kept brushing it off, convincing yourself it was just insomnia or too much caffeine. But now, it's gotten to a point where you're mixing lies with truths, trying to convince him—and maybe even yourself—that it's not a big deal.

Right now, you sat within the familiar comforting atmosphere of the coffee shop, resting your head on the table while gazing out at the falling cherry blossoms gliding gracefully to meet the gentleness of the grass. Giyu sat in front of you, his expression a mix of concern and quiet worry, watching you closely as if waiting for you to say something, anything.

"You know you should get that checked out- it might be serious—"

You cut him off with a voice that was criminally reassuring, your tone wanting no room for protest as you spoke "It's just three days, nothing big" Your words came out smooth masking the exhaustion that laid beneath your firm claims, but the way his eyes furrowed told you that he wasn't buying it.

"It's three days Y/N.. three days." He repeated your words as if reminding you of what you had just said. He looked into your eyes, searching for any sign of the truth you hid behind it.

You groan and bury your face into your arms. You didn't have it in you to keep him worried.. he seemed more stressed than you were about this whole ordeal.

"Fine, I'll get it checked out tomorrow if I don't fall asleep" You reluctantly agreed but the way he smiled when you finally said yes was worth it. There was a quiet relief in his expression as if he had been waiting for you to say those words

He smiled when you finally agreed. You could feel his hand resting on your head playing with your hair, it was soothing..

"Hey Y/N, what perfume do you use?"

"Why?"

"It's good.."

—-----------—

You find yourself walking out of the perfume store with a two bottles of the perfume you always used, one was for you and the other was for him

The only reason you were buying this was because you owed him a favor after treating you out to that night market so you decided to buy him this one

As you think about the small conversation you had with him in the coffee shop you ended up spacing out while walking. The feeling of his hand gently playing with your soft locks lingered in its place and it seemed to cause a small smile to form on your lips...

His perfume wasn't bad either.. it smelled amazing, so you couldn't really understand why he wanted to change his perfume to a girl's perfume...

You snap out of your thoughts when you bump into someone. You stumble back slightly but quickly regain your bearings, offering a quiet apology to the person you had accidentally bumped into. The lady seemed curious about you, her gaze lingering for a moment, but that curiosity was quickly overshadowed by her concern as she noticed your exhaustion.

"Have you been sleeping dear?"

—-----------—

When you reached home, you placed the two boxes of perfume on the table and sank into the couch. The silence was deafening, yet it gave the words from earlier room to creep back into your thoughts, replaying over and over like an endless cassette. Each repetition seemed to weigh heavier than the last, the unspoken meaning behind them echoing in the stillness of the room.

Your attention turns to a photograph that was on the table, it was from yesterday.. when you and Giyu were just walking around the park trying to pass the time while catching up.

Giyu took the picture for you, his camera capturing the moment effortlessly. Later, you both posed for a photo together, and this time, you made sure to have it printed out the same day, holding the physical memory in your hands

You smiled at the picture before lying back on the couch, the memory lingering in your thoughts.

—-----------—

Two hours passed, then four, but the restlessness wouldn't subside. You couldn't take it anymore. With a deep sigh, you pushed yourself off the couch, grabbing your sling bag and slipping it over your shoulder. You hesitated for a moment, standing at the door, but the weight of the silence and the tension inside you drove you forward. Without another thought, you stepped outside and headed toward the bus stop.