Vol 4 Chapter 6 (2/2)

Yokozawa was filled with a renewed sense of urgency to keep Kiris.h.i.+ma from poking around in the sales department unless absolutely necessary; dealing with the blowback from any appearances he made was far too annoying.

He returned his focus now back to the proposal he’d been working on, intent on constructing some sort of springboard for discussion before the meeting later on. Typing away in a rather practical fas.h.i.+on, though, his mind wandered back to Kiris.h.i.+ma’s att.i.tude earlier. He’d been far more tractable than he usually was, even for being in public.

Wait–what if he’d done something to Yokozawa’s cell phone? Recalling their conversation the previous evening and how Kiris.h.i.+ma had been griping about the state of his phone’s wallpaper, he slipped his hand into his pocket, drawing the device back out.

If he’d set some outrageous image as the home screen picture, it would be very bad if anyone else saw it, so just in case, he flipped open the screen under his desk, glancing at it quickly–but his worry had been for naught, as the screen was the same as it had always been. “…Guess I’m just over-thinking things.”

It wasn’t like the guy was the type to mess around all the time; he was the strange one here, acting as if having tricks played on him by Kiris.h.i.+ma was an everyday thing.

Collecting himself, he returned his focus to the computer screen and set back to work.

“Ugh…”

The day had been packed with meetings and summons, leaving Yokozawa unable to attend to the work he’d had waiting for him back at his desk and with little choice but to put in overtime to see it finished. While he could have easily left it for the next day with no issue, finis.h.i.+ng quickly with time to spare was easier on his nerves. He wanted to take care of all this business beforehand–so that he could be sure to be able to leave work on time come Friday.

But he was too stiff just at the moment to soldier on, and rather than continuing to bury himself in his work, he deemed it likely a better idea to stretch his legs a bit. “I’m gonna take a break,” he announced, slipping his cell phone and some change into his pocket.

“Huh? You mean you’re staying longer?” Henmi asked, surprise clear on his face. It was probably hard for the guy to bring himself to leave so long as Yokozawa was still hanging around, and glancing around the rest of the floor, most of the other workers had already headed home for the day.

“I’ll head out after taking care of a bit more paperwork. You can go on ahead if you like.” It was his own d.a.m.n fault he was still here, so it was hardly fair to ask his subordinates to do the same. Sure, there were some in the office who forced their underlings to keep up with their own pace, but Yokozawa wasn’t one of them, and while he did place value on the spirit of cooperation, too much pressure to conform and go with the flow was utterly inefficient.

“Then I’ll take my leave once I’ve found a good stopping point! It’ll be all downhill from here, after all.”

“I see. Well–don’t overdo it.”

Henmi snickered at the casual advice. “I could say the same thing to you! Please take sure not to work yourself too hard, Yokozawa-san.”

Yokozawa couldn’t stifle a wry grin at the remark. “Never thought I’d hear that coming from you. Guess I’d better take care, then.” He hadn’t expected to hear the same words Kiris.h.i.+ma directed at him from his own subordinates. Maybe from an outsider’s perspective he really did seem to be driving himself too hard; a change in his lifestyle might bear some consideration, he pondered, and with a soft sigh, he headed toward the break room.

When he came to, he noticed his head was sitting at an odd angle–and the material propped under him was too hard to be a pillow, and a bit too tall as well. A bit woozy as he was, the time and location were hard to recall, and he couldn’t quite get a grip on just where he was at the moment. Rifling around through his mind, though, he finally remembered heading into the break room for a short respite while working overtime.

He definitely recalled buying a coffee, thinking to inject a bit of life into his tired bones via some caffeine and sugar–but when he’d sat down, he’d suddenly been overcome with a wave of exhaustion and leaned over to rest against the wall. After that, though, everything was a blur, suggesting that he’d lost his battle with sleep.

He knew he had to get himself up and going again to get back to work, but he just couldn’t shake the drowsiness, and just as he was fighting to keep his heavy lids open, a voice called out from somewhere above him, “You can sleep a bit more; I’ll wake you in another 10 minutes.”

Ah…okay then… he thought dully, fully prepared to give himself up to slumber once more–but the sensation of fingers threading through his hair snapped him back to reality in a flash. His eyes snapped wide open, bringing him face to face with Kiris.h.i.+ma staring down at him. Before he could even ponder why Kiris.h.i.+mawas here, though, he jumped up almost in reflex. “Wha—t the…?!”

The sudden movement sent his head slamming into Kiris.h.i.+ma’s chin, and with a dull thunk, they both quickly found themselves nursing their injured areas.

“Owwwwowowow…what the h.e.l.l–that f.u.c.king hurt, you blockhead.”

“I could say the same for you! What the h.e.l.l are you doing?!” His tone reflected his panic at the unexpected situation he’d found himself in. He’d just woken up, too, to make matters worse–and so he hadn’t quite managed to organize his thoughts just yet.

“Whadya mean ‘what am I doing’? Letting you sleep on my lap.Duh. You should’ve seen the position you were trying to nap in. I kindly loaned you my lap as a pillow, though, and this is the thanks I get?”

“Don’t take that condescending tone with me.” It wasn’t as if he’dasked for Kiris.h.i.+ma to do such a thing, and even though most everyone in the office had already left for the day, they really ought to be more discreet considering that more than a few editors were still hanging around.

“You saying I wasn’t comfortable?”

“That’s not the issue, for one, and h.e.l.l no you weren’t comfortable for another!”

“Come now, we mustn’t be picky; it was better than no pillow at all, right? Mr. ‘about to topple out of the chair he was sitting in’?”

“Then you could’ve woken me up.”

“Why the h.e.l.l would I do that? Not like I get to see you in that state all that often, after all; wanna see?” He whipped out his cell phone here to show Yokozawa the picture he’d apparently snapped. It was indeed a sight to be seen, but surely there was no reason for the guy to take a picture and then force him to see it.

“I keep telling you–don’t take pictures of me like that. When are you gonna get it through your head?!” His indignation rose, shame and disgust mixing in a whirling battle for dominance in his mind. The exhaustion that had befallen him moments before was nowhere to be seen now.

“C’mon, this is nothing–you’re a man, so pull your panties out of your a.s.s. You’d be a h.e.l.l of a lot more popular if you’d learn to stay cool and collected.”

“I don’t wanna hear that from you…” His temple began to twitch with irritation, and reminding himself that blowing up would only be playing into Kiris.h.i.+ma’s hands, he gulped down the rest of his now-cool coffee in one go. He’d come into this room for a respite, but putting up with Kiris.h.i.+ma had sapped his strength once again. He really wished the guy would grow up and stop teasing so mercilessly.

“Oh, and just so we’re clear: I’m fine with being able to use an arm as a pillow in return for lending you my lap.”

The casually bold manner in which he offered this exchange led Yokozawa to respond in much the same mood. “…Whose arm?”

“Yours.”

“…For who?”

“Me.”

After pausing to consider this for only a moment, he quickly snapped back to himself. “Who the h.e.l.l would…?!” He’d only imagined it for a flash, but that instant had proven so stomach-churningly disgusting his thoughts had screeched to a halt. He couldn’t wrap his mind around Kiris.h.i.+ma’s mentality that he would request something like that so casually. Lap pillows, arm pillows–these weren’t the kinds of things men pa.s.sing 180 cm in height didfor one another.

“Aww, c’mon–just for a little bit? It’s not fair that Sorata gets to have all the fun; I wanna get in on the action some too.”

“Don’t get jealous over a cat!” It was hard to tell just how serious the guy was being on this point–there was always the possibility he wasn’t joking in the least with Kiris.h.i.+ma, and he took a small step back at Kiris.h.i.+ma’s sullen, serious expression.

“I’m not jealous, just…envious, that’s all. If the arm’s a no-go, I’m fine with your lap, too.”

Trying to admonish someone like Kiris.h.i.+ma who was deaf to all argument was a mistake in and of itself, so it was best not to attempt such pointless things in the first place. “Stop hanging around here and get your a.s.s home; Hiyo’s waiting for you, isn’t she?”

“My mom’s over tonight, so she’ll be fine. I had a ton of meetings today, one right after the other, so it’s taking me forever to get through the work on my plate. I don’t wanna leave it til Friday, though, so I’m trying to get it done while I can.”

“All the more reason not to p.i.s.s around like this.”

“Hey, everyone needs a break now and then, right?”

“How the h.e.l.l is this a break…?”

“Whatever; at least I got to see you, and that’s enough to make me feel better. I’ll compromise with your shoulder–so give it up.”

“Shoulder?” Instead of responding, though, Kiris.h.i.+ma simply gently settled his head against Yokozawa’s shoulder, and while the sensation of his hair brus.h.i.+ng lightly against Yokozawa’s ears and neck was a bit ticklish, he bore it silently.

“…Yeah, you’re pretty stiff.”

“If you’ve got a problem with it, I’m happy to take it back.”

“Just offering my opinion.”

Yokozawa couldn’t imagine the position to be in any way comfortable, but Kiris.h.i.+ma continued to settle his weight against him, the feeling of his breathing in such close proximity proving a strange sensation indeed.

“Yokozawa…never lend your shoulder or arms or lap to anyone else but me, okay?”

“…You’re the only one who’d ever want them in the first place.”

“You think so?”

“I do.” He couldn’t help the soft chuckle that escaped at Kiris.h.i.+ma’s ridiculous worrying, and tugged along with the gesture, Kiris.h.i.+ma’s shoulders shook with mirth as well.

“Ngh…what the…?”

His cell phone was ringing shrilly from beside his pillow–apparently he hadn’t mistaken it for his alarm. Yokozawa squinted his eyes in the darkness as he checked the time; it was morning, but only just barely, and he still had some time before he needed to wake up. “…The f.u.c.k is calling at this hour…”

Depending on who it was, he had a good mind to cut short the call without even answering, but when he flipped open the screen and saw the caller’s name, he balked.

Where the caller’s name should have been were merely the word ‘Darling~♥’ and a shot of Kiris.h.i.+ma striking a pose with sparkling stars and hearts gaudily decorating the image. “…The h.e.l.l is the big idea…?!” he snarled into the receiver after punching the ‘answer’ b.u.t.ton, but all he received in return was amused laughter.

“Gooood morning. Did you have sweet dreams?”

“Forget that–what the h.e.l.l is this?!”

“Hey, you’re the one who told me I could do whatever I wanted. And I’d like to remind you that since you knew it was me calling, it means you must accept the fact that I am indeed your ‘Darling’.”

“Stop d.i.c.king around–and what the h.e.l.l do you want at this hour?!” There were still another good 20 minutes before he needed to wake up, and he wasn’t pleased in the least to have his precious morning slumber disturbed like this, his anger on the edge of explosion.

“It’s your wake-up call, of course. You weren’t noticing the little joke I’d played, so I had to take matters into my own hands.”

“………” Realizing that this had been the only reason he’d called to wake him up so early in the morning, Yokozawa couldn’t even summon the energy to be dumbfounded.

“Pretty awesome picture, huh? Hiyo took it for me and–“ He cut the call short with the press of a b.u.t.ton, in no mood to listen to Kiris.h.i.+ma’s nonsense, and navigated back to the address book to edit the entry.

“That a.s.shole, why does he always… A guy his age, pulling s.h.i.+t like this is just…” Muttering to himself, he turned off the picture-showing setting and then moved on to delete the image itself from his data folder entirely–

–and then paused. “………”

There…really was no need to delete the image, now that he thought about it, and he snapped his cell phone shut. Burying his face in his pillow, he felt overcome with a wave of exhaustion.

When was this guy gonna get tired of throwing him for a loop like this? Equally shocking, though, was how despite being p.i.s.sed from the core of his being at the man…he couldn’t bring himself to be entirely put off at his actions either.

“…Guess this is what they mean by ‘love makes you weak’, huh…”

In an effort to forget about these emotions he knew nothing to do with, he flopped back down on the bed. His alarm was set, so he had at least another good fifteen minutes to sleep–and not knowing that, an hour later, he’d sorely regret going back to sleep, he slipped off once again into slumber.