Misfit Together

Chapter 9

(Ok, this chapter has a pretty big turn in it... Are you ready? Cuz I'm sure not. Btw, if you haven't already seen, I've posted the first part of the new one-shot collection 'Opinions'. Anyway, here we go...)

We need to catch up! How bout this weekend?

Urushihara stared at the screen. His friends had just finished up their exams and Momoko was suggesting a meet up. His fingers tapped on the desk as he thought. He hadn't seen them recently, not for a couple of weeks, and he was starting to miss them. Still, he hesitated to reply. He wanted to tell them the truth, but he wasn't sure how. Even just finding an opportunity to bring it up could be difficult. And getting them to believe him would no doubt be worse. Showing them his wings or his magic powers would convince them, but the chances of being in a safe enough position to reveal it to them, and only them, were slim.

I don't have to do it yet... he told himself.

But then again, he might end up blurting it out if he wasn't careful, and without thinking about who else could hear.

He could be careful. He had been careful so far, hadn't he? He could handle this. With a soft sigh, Urushihara typed his response.

Not too far away, Momoko felt a twinge of fear. She only hoped this would all work out.

And a little further still, Shizuka sat at his own laptop. Momoko confirmed their plans to meet and he grimaced. They had agreed not to bring it up, but he had a bad feeling. The days passed and he constantly found himself wondering what was really going on with Urushihara, and if they might find out sooner than they had expected.

When Urushihara hopped off the train at Shinjuku station, he found Shizuka and Momoko already waiting for him. Their conversation seemed to trail off as he approached them, Shizuka offering his usual relaxed smile and raising his hand in a small wave. Momoko, on the other hand, seemed somehow... different. Aside from the orange wristband she always wore, her outfit was completely void of the clutter of accessories that he had never seen her without. Her whole demeanour was off, actually. Her smile and cheerful greeting were too forced. There was the faintest shaking in her voice. And...

She didn't pat his head.

She always...

He almost said something but they were already heading out of the train station and onto the busy streets. What had they been talking about before he got there? Shaking his head, Urushihara followed his friends out.

The day went by pretty much the same way it did every other time they went out together, but all three of them had something on their mind. Now that she knew there was something more to him, Momoko was noticing all the little things that Shizuka had tried to point out to her before. Urushihara always kept his head low. Sometimes he would casually slip around to one side while they were walking so that he was mostly out of sight from people walking by. He always seemed to be on guard, his eyes always shifting, but the way he talked was as calm and lazy as ever. Had he always been this way?

A police siren sounded a block or two away and both Momoko and Shizuka saw him perk up. His voice never wavered, his pace never changed. But he was listening. They could see that now. He was aware of everything going on around him.

After a couple of hours, Shizuka suggested taking the train to Hatagaya. Momoko and Urushihara both flinched, but neither refused. Momoko gave Shizuka a questioning look. What was he doing? He returned it with a steady, reassuring gaze. At that, Momoko tried to calm herself. She had to act like nothing was wrong.

Urushihara was thinking the same thing. Were they getting suspicious?

"Yeah, alright." His voice stayed level, indifferent, but something in the way his eyes narrowed unnerved Momoko.