#imi writes

You froze, unable to turn around as harsh footsteps approached eerily in the snow. Mentally cursing your luck, your day, honestly your everything at this point, you began slowly backing away, hoping that there was a way out of this.

“Now, where do you think you’re going?” The voice asked a hint of amusement in their tone.

You knew there was nowhere to run. This was a dead-end alley. Your breath began to quicken as you quickly realized you were trapped. Searching your surroundings, you hoped someone had left an empty bottle around or something that you could defend yourself with as you whipped your head around over and over, causing the person to cackle sickly.

“Oh, sweetheart...what are you doing?” They questioned, a click of a knife echoing through the small area. They were closing in on you as you finally hit the dampened brick wall of the alleyway.

Your throat went dry as you closed your eyes tightly in fear, curling into a tight ball as the person began to pass the dumpster. There was a loud thud, however. The sound of flesh hitting flesh. Meekly opening your eyes, a rather muscular blond man was standing in front of you. His expression was dull, though he looked almost relieved as he held out a hand.

Blinking a bit, you took the rather large hand, and he roughly pulled you up from your position on the cold, snowy ground. He stared at you a moment before starting to walk away, grabbing your assailant by the hood and dragging him along with him, “W-wait!” You called out in confusion, outstretching a hand. The person stopped a moment, a groan coming from the person he was holding. Tipping his head slightly to the side, he looked over his shoulder. His piercing blue eyes stared back as if to ask you “what”.

Pursing your lips, you stared back into those eyes with slight uncertainty, “Who are you?”

A smirk slowly spread across his face as he turned a continued walking, ignoring your question completely as he lifted the person he was dragging into his arms like a ragdoll.

Crossing your arms and huffing a bit, you walked towards the dumpster only to see that the trash had already been put in, “Thanks!” You called out, though the person had already disappeared past the corner. It did bother you a bit that he never responded to you and that you didn’t know his name either. Shrugging your shoulders, you figured that you might see him around again, though. After all, it was a convenience store.

How wrong you were.

It had been nearly four months since that incident, and you hadn’t seen the mystery man since, and it was driving you insane. All of your friends knew about him, teased you about him, hell, even one of them made a fake missing poster of him and sent it to the group chat. All you had to go on was your memory because the security cameras were, of course, broken.

Sighing heavily, you leaning on the counter once per usual when there weren’t any customers in the store. Your manager was absent that night, stating there was a personal affair they needed to attend to. You knew that was likely code for “It’s a Friday night, and I want to watch TV,” though calling them out was a war you didn’t want to start that day. The electronic bell to the store chimed, your head not looking from its position.

“Do you sell bandages here?” A deep voice questioned.

“Yep, check the back aisle. There should be a couple of sizes.”

You silently hoped the person wasn’t bleeding on the floor and that you wouldn’t have to clean that up later. Peeking up, you breathed a sigh of relief as you saw no blood on the floor. However, you did see something familiar. Your eyes trailed to the blond tuft of hair that was sticking out above the aisle, butterflies filling your stomach. Slowly, you watched as the tuft of hair moved to the end cap of the aisle, revealing the rather bored yet beat-up looking person who had saved you on that winter day.

“Is something wrong?” He asked as he approached the counter, noticing your stare as he began pulling out his wallet.

You shook your head vigorously, causing him to raise a blond brow in suspicion as he placed a few dollars onto the countertop. As he turned to walk away, you once more feel that familiar feeling in your chest. The one that you felt for the past several months. That unexplainable loneliness and confusion when you didn’t even know this man’s name. Running out from behind the counter, a bit faster than expected to your surprise, you caught yourself on a shelf.

“Hey…” You breathed, a smile on your face as you looked up at him, his bored and tired gaze staring down at you, “What’s your name?”

He continued staring before sighing a bit, his icy eyes rolling a bit, “Put these on me, and we can talk.”

“H-huh?” You stuttered, only seeming to cause the person in front of you to shake his head.

“Put these on me,” He threw you the box which you tossed around in your hands haphazardly before finally grabbing firmly, “And we’ll talk.”

Chewing the bottom of your lip nervously, you nodded your head in agreement to his suggestion, “Okay.” Then, you pointed toward the break room, “It’ll be easier to put them on in there, do you want to…?”

The man started walking towards the room without a word, something you’d determined was common for him by now. He truly seemed like he acted rather than said words, and you weren’t sure how you felt about that quite yet as the two of you gathered around the card table.

“I think there’s a first-aid kit around here somewhere.”

“Don’t need it.”

Staring at him a moment before walking over to the cabinet, you began rummaging through the contents—much to the other’s annoyance. Then, pulling out the red-colored bag and walking over, the blond had crossed his arms and started looking at the tiled ceiling of the room.

“Staring too long is bad for your eyes.” You chided, which elicited an amused snort from the other.

“You seem to be doing better than before…” He commented, you could feel his eyes examining your body as you pulled out a couple of alcohol wipes, “Stronger, I mean.”

Laughing nervously, you zipped up the bag, “I started self-defense.”

He leaned back a bit, nodding his head, “Good for you.”

You ripped open the alcohol wipe and leaned forward, “This is going to-”

“Sting, I know.”

You began wiping away the dried blood and grime from the wound, the man underneath you not even flinching at the ministrations as you slowly cleaned the wound up. As you finished, you applied some antibiotic cream on top of the main wound.

“Can you pass me a bandage?” You asked, holding your clean hand out.

The blond carefully opened the box and pulled out a bandage, his large fingers making it look comically small as you took it into your hand and opened it. Then, pushing his hair back, you applied the bandage, smoothing it down gently with your fingers and nodding to yourself when it was fully applied.

“Okay, looks good.” You say with a thumbs up. The man nods in confirmation, standing up from the chair and stretching his back. You look at him a moment before sighing and crossing your arms.

“So, are you going to tell me your name? Or at least say thank you?”

Raising a brow, the man shrugged, “I don’t have to.”

Blinking, you tilt your head to the side, “Huh?”

“After all, I did save your life.” A smirk ghosting his features.

You weren’t sure if you wanted to punch the smirk off his face or not, though you wanted to know more about him.

⇢ Sanzu would likely bring you medication, drinks, ice cream, snacks, coloring books, movies to watch, and even fuzzy socks. You’re genuinely overwhelmed with the number of things he brings when you get sick sometimes that you hesitate to tell him that you are sometimes.

“There’s even a face mask set here…” You say quietly, looking up from the bags that Sanzu had brought you, “Why did you buy all of this, though?”

“I didn’t buy all of it,” Sanzu pointed out with a smirk, causing your brow to raise.

“...Haru…” You warned, slowly, putting what you’d taken out of the bag back in, “You didn’t.”

“Come on, you gotta live sometime. Where’s the thrill?” He whispered, leaning in and opening a pack of Twizzlers.

You blinked a bit before sniffing, “Twizzlers are shit. If you’re gonna make that kinda statement, at least eat the Nerds Rope.” You snatched the candy out of the bag and ripped it open with your teeth.

“There’s my Y/N!” He touted with a signature grin.

⇢ He would hold your hair for you when you’re sick to your stomach, making sure to rub gentle circles into your back. He always makes sure to clean you up after this with a cold washcloth because he knows how terrible it feels.

“It’s okay…” Sanzu sighed, gently rubbing circles into your back, “That all of it?”

You look up at him with teary eyes, which cause his stomach to drop a bit, though his poker face holds for you, “Mhm.”

“Okay, let’s get you some water.” He then realizes he’ll have to let go of you and that he doesn’t want to do that.

“Haru…” You cough, reaching for some tissue weakly, “I’m okay, you can go.” Reassuring him with a smile.

The pink-haired man sucks his teeth before finally letting go. “I’ll be back.”

“I trust you.”

A wild grin paints itself across his face as he kisses the top of your head before strutting towards the kitchen. Those words obviously weighing on him.

⇢ When other people ask how you’re doing, he almost always says they you’re fine. However, he doesn’t like it when people fish for information through him able you.

“Sanzu, how’s Y/N?” Ran asked one day after a meeting, his somewhat sunny demeanor only seeming to piss Sanzu off more.

Sanzu stared at him, “Fine.”

“Just fine? I thought they have th-” Ran attempted, a brow raised.

“They’re fine. Drop it.” Sanzu threatened.

“Geez...moody.” Rindou grumbled from the side, rolling his eyes.

⇢ Sanzu does not care if he gets sick as well. He will still climb into bed with you, hold you close to his chest, and kiss up the back of your neck, much to your protest.

“Haru, stop, you’re going to get sick too…” You cough, trying to push him away.

“Mmmm...I don’t care.” He chuckles, pulling you to his chest, “I miss hold’in ya.”

You grumble a bit before giving in, cuddling into him and easily falling asleep.

⇢ When you’re feeling better, Sanzu would ask what you’d want to do. And truth be told, you just wanted to get out of the house, so you both ended up just going on a walk one night after he got home, even if it was late. Both of you walked around then block, talking about meaningless things while looking up at the stars.

“The laundry today was kinda funny because you left some change in the pocket of your pants, so I heard this rattling, and I thought the dryer broke.”

“Oh, sorry, babe.” He chuckled, planting a kiss on your cheek, “But I bet you’re rich now.”

You smirked, “Yes, a whole 17 cents richer, get Kokonoi on the phone.”

Sanzu blew a raspberry, “I’m sure he’d love that.”

You squeezed your hand in his a bit, causing him to look over at you, “Everything okay?”

“Mhm.”

South to most might look rather frightening, enormous, and perhaps even a bit imposing. Though my HC is outside of gang-related things, he’s reasonably mild and easy-going despite his looks.

Most of the time, I think South spends his off-days looking for classical records in hole-in-the-wall shops and getting into heated debates with the clerks when they try to guide him into the more modern sections of the store based on his looks. Conversations such as:

“I’m looking for Chopin, not Little whatever-the-fuck.”

and

“This is the R&B section, not the Classical section, I don’t know what kind of man you take me for, but you’re sorely mistaken.”

However, when he finds something he’s looking for in the shop, his face lights up like a kid on Christmas, which is exactly how you and South bumped into one another.

—x—

“Let’s see…” You hummed to yourself as your fingers carded over the various records, “Nocturne….Nocturne…” You whispered to yourself, eyes scanning as you went down the stack. As your hand reached over, another slowly darted out underneath it. A startled gasp left your lips as you snatched your hand away in shock, “I’m sorry, I wasn’t paying attention!” You looked up and mentally panicked.

Oh no…The guy… was terrifying.

The man in front looked down at you, though it looked more as though he was a predator eyeing up its prey. His golden eyes stared at you before he tipped his head to the side, “Do you need help finding something…?” His deep voice questioned.

Huh?

You froze like a deer in headlights, causing him to laugh a bit, “Cat got your tongue or something?”

Blushing, you shook your head, “I’m just…looking for Chopin.” You explained, voice trailing off a bit near the end as the giant hummed.

“Good taste.”

“Huh?”

“I said you have good taste.”

“…Thank…you?” You questioned with a laugh, the oddity of the situation getting to you as the tall man pointed over to one of the stacks.

“Try over there…but if you can’t…” He reached into his pocket and pulled out a small notepad and pen before beginning to write, “Feel free to contact me.” He tore the slip of paper and attempted to hand it to you.

You stared at the piece of paper and how small it looked in his gargantuan-sized hands, taking a slight glance back up at the top-knot-headed man handing it to you. Before you knew it, a laugh erupted from your throat, the fear you once felt leaving your body all at once as he simply raised a brow at you.

“I didn’t say anything funny?” The man asked in confusion, hand still outstretched with the paper.

You wiped a tear from your eye, not entirely sure why you found this scene to be so funny, “I’m sorry, it’s just…you don’t even know my name, and I don’t even know yours.”

“Well...” He began as his face contorted into thought, “How about we fix that.”

And that was how you got to know Terano South, lover of Classical music, bad fast food late at night, going on walks just for the sake of going on a walk, and lastly, leader of Rokuhara Tandai, even if he didn’t tell you that for a few months.

---x---

South’s confession to you was somewhat normal. At least that’s how you felt it was when he came over that night. Both of you had decided to watch Casablanca again, even though it was a one-way ticket to you falling asleep somewhere near the end. You had a feeling this was South’s goal in the end, though you brushed it aside as you both continued to watch the movie. Slowly but surely, however, your eyes began to feel heavy, and you felt your head slowly make its way onto the giant’s somewhat comfortable lap.

You weren’t sure how long it had been before you felt a warm hand brush a piece of hair away from your face. Then, sighing a bit, you opened an eye and peeked upwards.

“Sleep’in again?” South asked, a warm smile on his face.

You blinked before sitting up quickly, his laugh booming through your small living room, “Ahh…” You cried in embarrassment, covering your face with your hands.

“Y/N?” South questioned, officially ignoring the movie and focusing on you, “I like you, Y/N.”

“…You can’t just outright tell me that!” You complained, throwing your hands off your face as a blush made its way up your neck.

“Well, I just did, so deal with it.” He huffed with a smug grin.

“…Fine.” You leaned back into the sofa, “I don’t think anyone else will put up with you anyways.” You joked, only to get a laugh in return.

“I wouldn’t have it any other way.” He snaked his hand into yours, turning back to the TV only to realize the movie had ended, “…Wanna watch it again?”

---x---

However, dating South sometimes came with some scares and frights that made you worry about him more often than not.

It was late.

Later then, he said he would be.

You bit into your lip, and you paced in your living room, thinking where he could be and if something could have happened. Then, walking over to the TV, you switched on the local news station only to nearly drop the remote.

Local gang-related brawl leads to several injuries…story still developing…

You hear a scraping sound at the door before a knock. Rushing over to the door, you open it to reveal a disheveled and bloodied South. The words get lost in your throat as your mouth goes dry. Yet, he looks up with that dumb smile he always wears.

“Hey, honey…I made it in time?” He asks in a hoarse voice.

“…You idiot.” You breathe, feeling tears stinging the inside corners of your eyes, “Come on…we need to fix you up.”

He chuckles hoarsely, “Mhm…” He slinks into the apartment, kicking off his boots at the front, “Sorry, you have to see me like this.” He sighs out as he attempts to slide off the top of his uniform, hissing as it pulls against a wound.

You glare at him, unable to process the emotions you’re feeling at the moment, unsure if you’re angry, sad, scared, thankful, or a combination of all of them. You decide not to say anything at all.

“You’re quiet?” South comments as he finally can strip down to his undershirt, “Listen…I’m sorry, I know it’s not easy being with someone like me, and being the leader is…” He sighs heavily.

You clench your fists and teeth before walking towards the bathroom, wanting to start the bath and perhaps just get away from this situation. Though inevitably, the situation follows you as South walks behind you.

“Alright, you’re pissed.” He states, as a matter of fact, “I’ll leave after this.”

You swing around and wrap your arms around his torso, causing him to hiss in pain.

“I was so worried you weren’t coming home…” You whisper, the man in shock as he hadn’t ever seen you act like this before.

“Babe…You know I’m stronger than that…” He reassured, sliding a hand down your waist.

“But…” You tried only to be silenced with his lips on your own.

“I don’t want to hear it.” He said after a moment, kissing your forehead.

What happened next was all but interesting and frightening at the same time. Several people piled into the bar from the outside seating area, causing a somewhat claustrophobic situation to occur for you. You hadn't expected something such as a performance to cause so much excitement as several of those now what you would have considered "scary" and "frightening" people were mingling before you discussing how they were excited for the performances tonight. Were you on mars or in a bar? That was indeed a good question as you stared straight ahead.

"Have you ever been here before?" Someone asked you, your head slowly turning to them.

"No."

They nodded their head, "You're in for a treat tonight."

Humming in acknowledgment that only caused you to wonder the meaning of that statement.

"Our first artist, Kakucho Hitto, please step on stage."

There was small applause from the crowd. However, you held your own in favor of watching said "Kakucho Hitto" step on stage.

You weren't sure what surprised you more about the man that all but floated onto the hardwood floor above the crowd. Perhaps it was the fact his figure seemed nearly see-through with how little of a presence he possessed, or the scar that wrapped his face in a way that caused you to want to look at him rather than away, or his raven locks that gently brushed against his cheeks as he walked. Leaning forward on your knees, your eyes watched his every movement as he quickly adjusted a microphone, giving it a couple of taps. It was when he looked down to adjust the base, both of your eyes met for the first time.

His gaze was piercing.

There was something about it you couldn't exactly put your finger on. It felt as though sound ceased to exist in this plane of reality when he looked into your eyes. You considered it a primal fight or flight response; having been caught staring is a bit embarrassing after all. But, even if this lasted for mere seconds, you could tell there was an amount of stress, anger, fear...You wondered what this "Kakucho Hitto" lived through. As his gaze broke from your own, your eyes caught on something.

Was that a smirk?!

"Riiight, so Kakucho here is going to be singing...Hey, Kakucho, how do you even say this-"

"Just turn on the music, Sanzu." The man on stage replied annoyedly, his eyes rolling slightly as he refocused on the crowd in front of himself.

You noticed that was a different voice from earlier; in fact, you were sure that was the same voice as the one guy your friend had been all over. Raising a brow at the oddity of the situation, you focused on the gentle music that flowed in from the speakers.

"Hope all of you will enjoy this," Kakucho spoke gently as the music rose, the crowd clapping once more before settling down, your eyes drifting to how the man had unbuttoned his black button-down shirt slightly to reveal a tattoo on his chest. The music lulled slowly into silence before a bassline picked up, and Kakucho took a small breath.

His somewhat cold gaze almost seemed to soften as he began to drawl out the lyrics to the song, as his eyes seemed to fill with the emotion behind the song rather than his own. His hands slowly reached up to the microphone in front of him, grasping it in a longing manner as his eyes became half-lidded.

He reached a hand towards the crowd as he continued singing, causing a minor uproar around you. Internally, you wished they would stop clamoring because all you wanted to hear was his voice.

As he reached the pre-chorus of the song, his extended hand met the tattoo on his chest, not so gently pounding out every beat. You felt yourself hinge on each action as he leads into the chorus, only to realize his gaze was once again meeting your own. Heart sinking into your stomach as he smirked and once again looked away, you felt as though you were just a piece in his game for the night.

As the song continued, there were other instances of the man named "Kakucho Hitto" looking your way only to look away with an amused look on his face. Eventually, you tried to stop looking. But, that…seemed to be the wrong answer? He only seemed to up his strategy at getting your attention by taking the microphone off its stand and walking around the stage while he quickly belted out the lyrics.

Deciding to look up once again was likely one of the most significant mistakes of the night, as the man's face had become slightly reddened from the stage lights and exertion, and his shirt seemed to reveal more and more of his jutting collar bone. You wanted, no needed to look away, but once again, he caught you staring. Red-handed. This time, however, he smiled.

Oh no.

You were not going down like this.

You were going to shove down the feelings you were feeling in your chest, stomach, head…You were until he began whispering the lyrics like it was some ASMR Youtube channel. Wanting to be mad but realizing how contradictory that would be, you kept your eyes on the stage for the outro. The man seemed to be having a good time with himself, the gentle smile returning to his face as he slid the microphone into its holster before whispering the final lyrics, his eyes slowly making their way to your form.

Blinking, you thought the best idea you could pose was pointing to yourself and mouthing a "me." Sometimes, you wondered if your humor would get you killed. Though when you saw his shoulders rises and fall with what looked to be a laugh, you felt a bit better about things.

"Alright, that's it for Kakucho Hitto tonight. Folks next up is Kaji Mochi and his…Who even let him play the banjo…"

A couple laughs could be heard in the audience as you moved from your seat, your escape plan beginning to sound like the idea of the century. You came, saw a cute guy, alright, time to ditch before your night goes down the tubes. The only problem was finding your friend; the only clue was that guy's voice.

"Hey."

"Not now, trying to figure something out."

There was a pause in your head before you turned around, seeing the raven-haired man behind you, blinking in shock. Yet, you could only laugh at your accidental refusal to talk to him.

"I'm sorr- I'm sorry, that's really funny."

He seemed perturbed by the comment, though you figured he might be used to it by now, "It's not."

"Oh, trust me, it is." You assured, your anxiety slowly fading as you watched his facial expressions shift from one of annoyance to softened amusement.

"I was going to ask if you wanted to drink, but…" He looked at the phone in your hand, "You seem busy."

It was your turn to blink. The offer genuinely caught you by surprise as it seemed relatively low stakes, "I'm just trying to find my friend." You explained with a laugh, "I think they wandered off with the person who talked earlier…Sanzu?"

Sighing heavily, the dark-haired man shook his head, "Sanzu…"

Tilting your head to the side, you pursed your lips at the tone of his voice, "Oh, is that bad?"

"They'll be fine, probably." He shrugged.

Thinking a moment before pointing, "Does this mean I need to go beat him up?"

Kakucho snorted at the thought, "You?"

"Yeah, me!" You huffed triumphantly.

"Sure, I'll put my money on you…uh…" He thought a moment, "I don't know your name."

"Secret." You joked, "Buy me a drink, and maybe I'll tell you."

The raven-haired man shook his head before the rare smile appeared again, "Sure."

As the bartender poured your drinks, you laid eyes on a physical copy of the flyer that had been on your friend's phone. Then, sliding it over to yourself as Kakucho seemed to busy himself talking with other patrons.

Bar Bonten

Performances this weekend

And listed below were a couple people, though what caught your eye was the symbol at the top. You'd seen it before on the news. Specifically attached to crimes about homicide, drugs, and prostitution. You almost laughed, though holding it in. This was a bar owned by one of the top gangs, and you were likely sitting with one of their top members…who liked to sing in his spare time.

"Everything okay?" The man next to you asked.

"Yep, though I'm going to hit the bathroom." You stated, pushing out your chair and starting to walk towards the bathrooms until you saw the back exit wide open. Your thoughts went to your friend, was there actually a way to help them. You could contact the police, but would they do anything?

"You've been standing there a while, you okay?"