Karasuno's Mangers: Little Ukai and The Runaway

41: Thawing Chicken

Kunimi stared at the television screen. He could see the actors and actresses moving around and talking but their voices were background noise. Only when his friends turned to him expectantly did he give a half-second reaction. This made them content enough to turn back to the television so he could drop the act.

Mirae was sitting on his left side clutching a bowl of popcorn to her chest. Her grey eyes were wide and she seemed to be reciting each line that the heroine spoke.

Kindaichi leaned against his left side, muttering and gasping every few scenes.

Every so often, one of them would reach for the remote sitting on the table in front of them to pause the show. They would learn forward and turn to look at each other with goofy grins and sparkling eyes.

"Did you see what she just did?"

"I can't believe I missed that the first time we watched it."

"He just brushed his hand against hers."

"She was listening in on their conversation!"

Kunimi felt like he was infringing on their alone time.

The popcorn had long gone stale and no longer satisfied his hunger. His right arm was becoming numb because of Kindaichi's weight against it. His fingertips prickled at the sensation. Finally, he shrugged him off and stood up.

"Where are you going?" Mirae asked. She quickly paused the show and stared at him with round eyes. "It was just getting to the good part."

"Getting water. You guys watch it, I'll be back."

He dragged his feet as he walked out of the living room and into the kitchen. He finally felt like he could breathe again.

Kunimi took a glass from the cupboard and reached for the pitcher of water. He tipped it, hearing the water trail into the cup. He frowned as it became full to the rim.

Their voices were muffled but the closer he walked to the living room, the more clear their words became. He stopped in the doorway.

Mirae was sitting cross-legged on the sofa, her body turned so that she was facing Kindaichi. He had his arm draped over the back of the sofa, one leg tucked under the other. They were staring at each other with the same goofy smiles and wide eyes and whether by choice or instinct, they had moved much closer to each other in the one or two minutes he had left the room.

He wondered how much closer they would get if he wordlessly left.

When his mom called to ask if he had taken the chicken out of the freezer for thawing, Kindaichi's face paled. He scrambled off the sofa and repeated apology after apology as he left the room.

"He's such a dork," Mirae grinned.

Kunimi had to agree with her.

They had gotten through four episodes of the drama and although he didn't understand the plot or the characters, he could tell his friends did. There were scenes they came close to crying in and scenes that made them angry. Sometimes they'd stare at each other with heart eyes and gush over how romantic a gesture was.

"Can I talk to you about something?" he asked.

Mirae looked up from her phone. "Of course, what's up?"

Kunimi sighed heavily. He had talked to Kindaichi about this little problem before but his friend had been of no help. All he said was "What?" and then short circuited for the rest of the day.