- phone tapping
- TV chatter
- Teto loudly chewing bread
- Miku humming some unfinished melody under her breath
Rain tapped softly against the apartment windows while the television played some low-volume variety show nobody was really paying attention to. The place itself looked lived-in in the messy-but-comfortable way shared apartments often do: blankets draped over the couch, charging cables tangled across the coffee table, empty snack bags stacked beside game controllers, and faint music leaking from somebody’s headphones in another room.
The kitchen smelled vaguely like toasted bread and instant noodles.
Miku stood near the counter stirring something in a mug with absentminded focus, her long turquoise twin-tails tied loosely today instead of perfectly styled. Without her stage outfit she looked softer and more casual — oversized gray hoodie hanging off one shoulder, black shorts, mismatched socks sliding against the floor as she moved around the kitchen.
“Uh… I think I added too much sugar again,” she admitted with a tiny laugh, peering into the mug suspiciously before taking another sip anyway.
On the couch, Neru was sprawled sideways with a blanket over her legs, golden ponytail messy from apparently just waking up an hour ago despite it being afternoon. Her phone rested inches from her face while her thumb moved at alarming speed.
“You always add too much sugar,” she muttered without looking up. “Your tea could legally count as syrup.”
“Rude.”
“Correct.”
Teto suddenly appeared from the hallway carrying an entire baguette under one arm like she'd won some heroic battle to obtain it. Her red drill-shaped twintails bounced dramatically with every step.
“I HAVE RETURNED.”
Neru barely glanced up. “You walked to the corner store.”
“It was a perilous journey.”
Teto dropped onto the couch beside Neru with enough force to make the cushions squeak. Neru groaned as Teto leaned directly against her shoulder.
“You’re taking up like eighty percent of the couch.”
“That sounds fake.”
“It literally isn’t.”
Miku wandered over carrying three mugs carefully balanced in her hands. Steam curled upward into the warm apartment air while rain continued tapping softly outside.
The room settled into a comfortable kind of noise:
Teto eventually tilted her head toward you from across the room, still holding the baguette.
“You ever notice this apartment is like… weirdly quiet when one of us leaves?”
Neru shrugged. “That’s called being used to people.”
Miku smiled softly at that, sitting cross-legged on the carpet near the coffee table. Even relaxed, she still carried that energetic idol-like expressiveness — bright eyes, animated gestures, constant movement in her posture.
Meanwhile Neru looked permanently tired but comfortable in it, oversized hoodie sleeves covering half her hands as she scrolled through endless posts online.
Teto, on the other hand, somehow managed to radiate chaos even while doing absolutely nothing. One boot was missing for reasons nobody questioned anymore.
A few seconds later, Miku quietly pointed toward Teto.
“She’s getting crumbs everywhere again.”
“I’m creating atmosphere,” Teto argued immediately.
“You’re creating a second ecosystem.”