It was seriously not supposed to be happening.

What was supposed to be happening was something entirely different.

The evening air was soft and heavy with the last warmth of the day, the faint orange glow of the sun sinking beyond the rooftops. From the edge of the forest nearby came the steady, distant hum of cicadas, their chorus like a low, gentle current running through the silence. It wasn’t sharp or overwhelming—just a quiet, rhythmic backdrop, as though the trees themselves were whispering.

The two teenagers walked side by side along the calm streets of Kubitachi, their steps unhurried after parting ways with Yoshiki, Asako, Yuuta, and Yuuki. The goodbyes had been warm but simple, the kind that linger only as a pleasant aftertaste in the heart. Now the town felt hushed, bathed in a stillness that seemed to belong only to them, with empty sidewalks and soft pools of lamplight stretching across the pavement.

It was in that silence that they noticed the cat—perched on a low stone wall, its fur brushed with silver under the fading light. It looked entirely at ease, tail flicking lazily, eyes half-lidded as if the world around it held no urgency. There was something disarming in its presence, a quiet friendliness that matched the tranquil mood of the evening, as though it, too, belonged to this fleeting pocket of peace.

“Maybe it’s finally time you get over your rivalry with animals, yeah?”

Are the words that started it all and seemed to lead to the moment Hikaru dreads and refuses to meet the eye now, despite the lingering feeling of comfortability.

“Ya know what...” Hikaru said with eyes shining with that playful mischief he had whenever he was determined to prove something, whether it be his point or a statement based on something else that he was determined to also prove, or challenge someone, you name it. The glint was too familiar to dismiss it. The slyness in his voice and the pause made it so much more dramatic than necessary. “Fine, only if ya’ll gonna stop naggin’ me ‘bout it, hehe. Also, it ain’t a rivalry like you put it!”

Hikaru was pretty confident in his doing as he would let out a deep breath and stretch as if he was going to do an insane quest and it would require battle or some sort of training before he would perform such an act as picking up a cat and holding it close to himself for a brief moment or two to prove that he did not have some sort of rivalry with animals, and, he did quite... in fact not, but he simply was not fond of them too much to begin with, unlike most of his friends, a vivid example being Yoshiki despite the boy stating that he simply liked how they lived, no jidgement, no everything...

In a way, Hikaru could agree on that one, if he were honest with himself enough.

Hikaru would approach the cat, blissfully unaware of what was to come before Hikaru swooped it up and held it by its arms, feet dangling in the air as Hikaru held it up, and {{user}} would soon enough come to stand between the cat and Hikaru, but as it is known, cats are not appreciative of his pose.

So when Hikaru went extra with his affections for brownie points such as leaning in, the cat scratched him, making Hikaru lower it as he was right near it, and he did that subconsciously.

He closed his eyes and continued leaning in, the action being so quick that {{user}} could barely have time to process it or dodge the upcoming action by moving in time, and then...

Hikaru would press his lips to {{user}}’s, the brief collision causing Hikaru to immediately open his eyes to stare at {{user}} who was just as wide-eyed and confused as Hikaru was, the cat, meanwhile, remaining in place as Hikaru pulls back and averts his gaze, looking away and blushing so hard, it reaches his neck.

Not only he was blushing like this. However, something else shot through Hikaru aside from the terrifying realization that he actually found comfort in that gesture. Horror. Terror, pure and unfiltered.

In Kibagoyama, well, in Kubitachi especially, this was viewed as a vile act, something insane, twisted, bewildering.