TRUST ME | Brothers Conflict | ✔

22

"You're a mess," Sakura told me, inspecting an empty carton that she had picked up from the floor.

"I know," I sniffed, looking for a clean tissue, but using a used one when I discovered that I had no clean ones left. With a disgusted face, Sakura handed me a roll of toilet paper.

"Listen, [Y/N], you can't keep this up," she lectured me. "If you call in sick another day, I'm going to drown under all the paperwork, and you'll end up as a pot plant."

"An interesting prospect," I argued, knowing that I was acting unreasonably.

"As interesting as it is, I'm against it."

Sighing, I rolled on my back to inspect the ceiling, blinking when I almost bumped noses with Sakura. She was hanging over the couch, waving with another roll with toilet paper.

"He rejected you once, so what? Just try another time."

"Not everyone's as tenacious as you," I huffed, lifting to my feet. "But I suppose that I can take a shower."

"Why aren't you going to try again?"

"He doesn't need another stalker. If I kept trying, I would end up like one of those girls. I broke our promise, Sakura."

"If you aren't going to try again, you shouldn't mope for a week. Your apartment has turned into a biohazardous area. I'm not surprised that your landlady wants to kick you out, [Y/N]."

After Kaname's rejection, I had locked myself in my apartment and hadn't left in the following twelve days.

"I won't let her win!" I exclaimed, startling Sakura who took a step back to avoid the fist I pumped in the air. "As long as I can pay the rent, this's my apartment!"

"I still think you should clean up. When are you going to take that planned shower by the way? You smell."

With an undignified huff, I headed to the bathroom. I regretted switching on the light when I peered into the mirror. My hair was a nest of tangles on my head, greasy with seven days of sweat and moping. My pyjamas were wrinkled and littered with stains from my meals. However, my expression was what drew my attention; dark bags under hollow eyes and tightly pressed lips.

I was looking unhappy -that was the best way to put it.

I saw Sakura approach me in the mirror, sighing when she slung an arm around my shoulder.

"Don't like what you're seeing?"

"Not particularly," I answered honestly, the sound transformed by my finger which I poked against my cheek. Sakura helped me poke my other cheek.

"Well, you used to glow when Kaname was around -it was especially infuriating for me."

I snorted, shaking my head with an amused smile.

Despite the fact that we didn't trust each other anymore, Sakura was a great friend; she didn't stop nagging until I gave in.

"I take it that you can take a shower by yourself. I'm going home to take a shower myself -I need one after stomping around in the hole." A long silence fell, in which the corners of Sakura's lips tipped upward in a smirk. "I'll be back tomorrow," she threatened.

I followed her advice, the simple chorus keeping my mind occupied. However, once I had finished them, I felt more restless than before.

My plans to use this newfound energy on making lunch were disturbed when I discovered that most cupboards were empty.

My plans to go to the supermarket around the corner were thwarted. Today, the supermarket was closed, and thus, I ended up wandering through the neighbourhood in search of a supermarket.

As unlikely as it seemed, I ended up in front of the store where I ran into Ema weeks ago. How two weeks could feel like an eternity, I didn't know, but I couldn't suppress the melancholy that comes with old memories when I entered the shop.

The cashier looked up when the doors shoved open, nodding in my direction.

Due to my focus on the cashier, I didn't notice the other customers until it was too late. My attempts to hide were foiled when Ema approached me with long strides that spoke of persistence.

Unless I ran away, I couldn't escape this encounter.

"Hi, Ema," I greeted her, flinching when I noticed the lack of enthusiasm in my voice.

"You'll be present tonight, won't you?" she asked me, grabbing the sleeve of my shirt in her hand. Startled, I looked at the fabric she was clutching in her left hand.

For a long moment, I didn't understand what she was talking about, the words finding no traction in my mind. Then I recalled Kaname's birthday party.

Simply put, I had forgotten about the party because there was no way Kaname hadn't withdrawn my invitation.

"I'm afraid that I won't be able to make it," I said.

"You do know that Kaname has been sulking for more than a week now? Please, take some pity on him and surprise him," Ema begged, a strange determination in her voice.

I could believe that Kaname was unhappy with what had happened between us, but my surprise appearance wasn't going to cure that.

"Well..."

"Kaname said you promised!" Ema whined with a harsh tug on my shirt.

"I didn't promise anything!" I protested, raising. From the corners of my eyes, I could see the cashier strain his neck to get a better view of our aisle.

"Listen," I hissed under my breath, "My presence won't be a birthday present, do you get that?"

Putting it like that was probably an understatement, but Ema caught the gist of it nevertheless.

"Are you going to leave me alone?" she asked me, her voice barely audible, even with her lips so close to my ears.

I was surprised to hear Ema express her discontent with her brothers so clearly, but her words were merely a surprise to me.

Ukyo, on the other, had stiffened, his blue eyes wide. How he had overheard Ema's whisper was a mystery to me, but he had undoubtedly heard her plea. Upon noticing that I was observing his reaction, he turned around sharply.

"If you won't—"

I covered Ema's mouth with a hand, knowing that there was only one way to stop her. With her back turned to Ukyo, she couldn't see that her words were tearing him apart. She probably hadn't even noticed how offensive her words were.

While I shouldn't care about Kaname's brothers, I had hated to see that unreadable expression on Ukyo's face.

"When did the party start?" I asked, my voice strained.

Ukyo glanced over his shoulder with a frown, but he didn't comment on the hoarseness in my voice.

Unrequited love was pretty terrifying.

"Besides, you still have my clothes," Ema babbled, the realisation that she had convinced me to attend settling in moments later.

"That's great! Just pick up my clothes and go to our house. I'll leave the door unlocked."

"You shouldn't leave any doors unlocked," I lectured, my own words made me cringe. "I'm sorry," I apologised swiftly, "I have no right to lecture you."

Why had I ever agreed to go to that damned party? I wasn't doing myself any favours with such self-destructive behaviour. Although Ukyo had regained his composure, I was about to lose a lot more than just my composure.

"See you later," Ema said, the greeting sounding more like a promise than a polite expression.

"Yeah," I said, the word a long drawl.

Using Ukyo as an excuse was hardly fair, I knew. Even without his pain, I would have let Ema persuade me. Kaname might have been right when he had believed me to be a stalker. I had sunk as low as befriending his sister to get closer to him.