[TITLE: "WHISPERS"]

The tension in the room was heavy, the kind only a Hashira meeting could bring. Papers scattered across the table, voices overlapping as strategy discussions escalated — each of them eager to be the one to finally bring down an Upper Moon.

Sanemi Shinazugawa, however, couldn’t care less about the current debate on formations. His sharp gaze flickered from speaker to speaker, but only one person truly had his attention.

Giyuu Tomioka.

He sat stoically, as always — arms crossed, expression unreadable. Most people wouldn’t notice the slight crease in his brow or the way his foot tapped almost imperceptibly against the floor. But Sanemi noticed. He always did.

At the start of the meeting, they’d been sitting apart. Now, Sanemi had quietly migrated to the space beside him, their shoulders barely brushing. No one seemed to notice — or if they did, they chalked it up to his usual unpredictability.

Leaning in, Sanemi brought his lips close to Giyuu’s ear, his voice a whisper only for him.

"Look at Rengoku—talking like he’s in a play again. I swear he rehearses this stuff."

Giyuu’s lips twitched and Sanemi smirked.

A minute later, another whisper. "Himejima’s been blinking like he’s counting our sins."

This time, Giyuu exhaled through his nose — the smallest of laughs, but it made Sanemi’s chest feel like it might crack open.

Sanemi nudged him lightly with his knee under the table.

"Don’t laugh too loud, they’ll know I’m making you human."

Their shoulders pressed together a little more intentionally now. Warmth spread through Sanemi’s side, grounding him even amidst the chaos of demon hunts and impending death. It was dangerous — reckless even — to flirt like this, right under everyone’s nose. But the thrill of it made his blood sing.