tenminutes | AFTERLIVING ONLY: IC INBOX

sry

[At first, that's all he sends. The next message comes a minute or so later, like he was hesitating.]

otonashi is gone

[ Oh. That's not something she's going to yell at Hinata for messaging her about. It's important, it's... sad.

And while Yuri's come a long way, she's not exactly sure how to face comforting Hinata. After all, Hinata and Otonashi were close friends. Yuri liked Otonashi well enough and trusted him to do the right thing no matter what it was, but it was different between them. She needed to be the one to comfort here, but Yuri honestly wasn't sure how.

Nevermind the business-y problems in the SSS of losing Otonashi. ]

Sorry. u 2 were close. hes not just missing?

[That's precisely why he went to Yuri. He feels vulnerable, and she's the only one he trusts enough to show it to. He shrugs off most situations with humor or intentional idiocy, trying as hard as he can to suffer quietly. Now is not one of those times. He needs to be told that everything will be alright... or at least know that she's still there.]

no i ws lookig 4 him all day

[There's another pause between messages.]

i tried 2 text him earler an his name is gone

[ Yuri considers what all she could do, but the best she can come up with is just talking to him. Instead of texting him back, she calls him. ]

Hey.

[He was literally just texting her a second ago. There's really no reason it should have taken him four and a half rings to answer his phone. When he does, his voice is quiet, and a little heavier than normal. It's obvious he's trying to sound fine, but it only works if he's had more time to prepare. She'd caught him off guard.]

H-hey..! [His voice cracks slightly, prompting him to clear his throat and immediately deflect her.] Isn't it kind of late to be calling me? What will people think! H-haha...

[He's trying as hard as he can, but the strain is obvious in his voice. For someone who's a professional at burying emotions, he's having a hell of a time keeping it up right now.]

[ At least that gives Yuri time to go outside. Since it's late, Yuri seems to be being polite. She's sitting next to her door in the hallway now so that she doesn't wake up Sonia. ]

They'll think you just lost your best friend and someone you know is making sure you're okay.

[ Yuri seems to be faring a good amount better than he is, though she's always been much better at hiding emotions than him, even with both of their intensive practice. ]

[For a moment, her only response is the sound of his carefully tailored breathing, trying not to sound too choked up or panicked. Eventually, he manages to swallow the lump of emotion in his throat, exhaling slowly to compose himself.]

I... didn't think he'd go. [After everything they'd done with Kanade... Hinata had no reason to think that Otonashi would go until everything had been resolved. Other people leaving was sad, but everyone had their own demons to overcome, their own things holding them back... Did satisfaction no longer have any bearing on who came and went? Hinata had left and returned, after all, but his reason for being in the afterlife... No. He couldn't think about that right now.]

I-I'll be alright. My roommate is gone too, so I'm just... a little shaken, I guess.

Your roommate too..?

[ Yuri sounds like she's a little suspicious, but.. now's not the time. That many people disappearing around Hinata at the same time is odd, Otonashi disappearing without the rest of them being ready was even odder. But... if the way things were now was any indication, she shouldn't have been here anymore either. She'd watched Naoi disappear, Hinata would've gone right after her, then Kanade and Otonashi.

Theories about that weren't what Hinata needed right now though. Yuri slumped against the wall. ]

Do you have an NPC or are you all alone right now?

[Hinata isn't exactly a self-centered guy, so he wouldn't draw the conclusion that he's being targeted... but if the Programmer is using him as some kind of human experiment, he might want to keep on his toes. Otonashi and Eren going at basically the same time was definitely concerning.]

I'm... alone right now. Eren's bed is still unmade, so nothing's reset yet...

[Come midnight, a new NPC roommate might wander in, but he was on his own for the time being.]

[ And Yuri hangs up. It probably seems pretty rude, but hey. She's just going to come over. But not before she goes and grabs a can of coffee for each of them, a fruit cup for herself, and a cup of natto for Hinata. She might not like it, but she knows that Hinata does. He needs it now. Well, not natto but something comforting.

After about 15 minutes, she comes and kicks the door to knock before trying the door handle only half a second later. If it's open, she's coming in. If not, then she'll kick the door again, with the side of her foot. After all, she was only wearing slippers since she hadn't bothered to change out of her pajamas. ]

It's me.

[The thump of her foot against the door prompts him to stand up from the desk chair and answer it... only for her to open it into his face a second later. He lurches back as the door hits him, clenching his teeth hard to avoid crying out. His eyes involuntarily tear up from the impact, but he seems fine once the initial shock passes.]

H-hey... [This time, he's pretty confident that it wasn't on purpose. That, or he doesn't have the energy to protest.]

[ Yuri doesn't even seem to notice that she hit him in the face with the door. Truth be told, she's pretty used to inadvertently hitting Hinata. If it's just physical though, it all heals, so she stopped worrying about that kind of thing a long time ago-- provided she was the one who inflicted it, not someone else.

Anyone else and she would tear them a new one.

That said, she holds out the little plastic container of natto to him. ]

I'll sleep on the floor tonight, but this is the only night I'm doing it, got it? You're going to have to get used to being without a roommate after this.

[As standoffish as she could be, the little container of natto she handed him was one of the nicest things she could have done. Carefully, he took it from her, examining the little cup with the plastic lid. It was such a small thing... but he suddenly understood why Ooyama had treasured the identical cup Hinata had given him all that time ago.]

[Maybe he was reading too far into the gesture--or not far enough--but this stupid little cup of natto was a gesture of utter selflessness on her part. She hated it, but she knew he'd like it and put his needs and desires before her own. He couldn't ignore that.]

Yurippe... [He managed a sad little smile, blinking back the sting of tears. Sometimes you forget that the best things are right in front of you.] ...thanks.

Don't get all stupid and sappy, okay?

[ Honestly, she would have no idea what to do if he started crying in this situation. She had to backpedal on that kindness by throwing the can of coffee at him in the hopes of distracting him from thinking anything of what she'd done.

Yuri moved and sat down on the floor next to his bed, moving her hand up to pull his blanket off so she could use it. ]

[And there she was. Back to normal. Still, the gesture remained, and he couldn't even be that upset when she threw the coffee at him to tsun the niceness away. He moved an arm up to shield his head from the can, so it ended up bouncing off his arm and landing on the floor... thankfully it wasn't carbonated.]

[He retrieved a sleeve of chopsticks from his desk, settling back down on the floor and peeling the lid off the natto. Out of consideration for her, he'd try to eat it quickly.]

...Why don't you take my bed? I can sleep on the floor. [There's also another bunk... but Hinata admittedly feels a little weird about sleeping in Eren's bed now that he's gone.]

I'm not sleeping in your bed!

[ She was a little quick to say that, a little loud, but.. well, after everything they've been going through lately, she didn't think that was a good idea. She still hadn't decided where she stood on that near-confession that Hinata had attempted. ]

The floor's fine.

[The ferocity with which she shot him down was a little... surprising. He picked up a bite of natto with his chopsticks, lifting the slimy mess to his mouth. Who knew why he liked it...]

You know- [He took a moment to finish chewing.] -it's not like my bed is gross or anything. The sheets are new...

[He was either completely misreading her resistance... or knew why she was resisting, trying to get an answer out of her. The slight smile in his voice suggested the latter.]

I'm not sleeping in your bed and you know why.

[ He couldn't be that oblivious to this whole situation, could he? She was still trying to think about what was going on and it wasn't like she wanted to talk about that right now. This was about comforting him, she didn't want to do that that way.

Yuri hadn't really touched her little cup of fruit, but she seemed content with commenting on Hinata's for now as she opened up her can of coffee. A subject change was definitely in order. ]

..I still don't get how you eat that stuff.

[So she was shy! He grinned to himself as she shot him down again, taking another bite of natto, looking thoughtful as he chewed.]

In that case... maybe I'll sleep on the floor, too! It would be rude to be comfortable in a bed when you're huddled down here on the hard floor... [That's a lame excuse and he knows it, but maybe flustering her is making him feel a little better... or at least providing a distraction.]

[As for the natto...] It's good for you..! Most people have it with rice, and I like it with spicy curry... [He picks up another portion with his chopsticks, looking it over before offering the bite out to her.] Do you want some?

[ Yuri slammed both of her hands down on the floor, facing Hinata as she leaned forward and raised her voice at him. ]

Why would I want that?! That's completely disgusting, don't put it in my face! You can sleep on the floor with your natto, I'll go back to my room!

[Whoops, maybe that was too much of an overload of "unintentional" closeness for her. Sleeping on the floor together and sharing chopsticks? Fine, he probably deserved to get yelled at for that one.]

Alright, alright..! [He places the bite of natto back in the container, sticking the ends of his chopsticks in his mouth to clean them before slipping them back in their sleeve, popping the lid back on the natto container.] Look, see? It's all put away.

[He placed the foodstuffs on his desk, realizing then that there was an unopened can of coffee waiting for him.] I'll sleep in my own bed, alright? You don't have to leave. [Ah, so that was it. He picked up the coffee, leaning his shoulder against one of the posts of the bunk bed as he opened it. As much as he was putting on a good show of being alright, he didn't particularly want to be alone. Just having her here was soothing, he didn't really want to mess that up.]

[ Actually, that time she just started yelling because natto is gross don't get it near her. Clearly Hinata is underestimating her distaste of natto.

Yuri seemed to calm down once he stopped trying to share it with her, ending up setting her unopened fruit cup up with his natto on the desk and keeping the coffee on the floor next to her as she laid down on it, keeping her head near Hinata. ]

I'll stay then.

[ Yuri hesitates for a moment, then decides to add in something. After all, she knows what it's like to be scared of the people around you disappearing. ]

If they're gone it means they're in a better place, Hinata. No matter how scared you get or how much it hurts, you have to remember that or you'll put everyone in danger.

[ That's what happened to Yuri right before the shadows first appeared, after all. ]

[He watches as she moves to lay down, shifting a little to give her the room to do so. The can of coffee was cold against his fingers, prompting him to take a sip of it before setting it down beside him.]

[Her words catch him off guard, that practiced facade of joviality cracking, not even trying to fake it as his face went a little pale. He let her finish, quiet for another moment before he finally spoke, his voice trembling faintly.] ...The people that have been disappearing... I was close to all of them.

[He turns his head off to the side, avoiding meeting her eyes directly.] I-I just... want to know why.

I ask myself that every time I lose someone, Hinata. There's no reason why. If anyone has those answers, it'd be God.

[ That's always been a huge portion of her reason for going after him in the first place. Because He was the only one who could possibly know, who could possibly have done something besides her and He didn't.

Suddenly, Yuri reached over and hit the side of his leg. As though to jump-start him. ]

Remember when you promised me forever ago that you weren't going to leave me alone? I'm going to promise the same.

[Her words strike a chord with him, glancing briefly down at her face. That's right... she was already her when he arrived the first time. Had she known and lost people before he arrived? He'd never really thought to ask, so swept up in the excitement of creating the SSS. Sometimes he forgot that they hadn't had each other the whole time. He'd always had her... twice he'd arrived and she was there with all the answers.]

[When she smacked his leg, he did indeed startle, looking down at her wide-eyed. He'd always thought that her staying until the end was self-evident. She wouldn't leave unless everyone did, but hearing her say it aloud... He swallowed a lump of emotion in his throat, shifting to lay on the floor, facing the other way from her so they weren't laying next to one another. He lay on his back, looking up at the ceiling, his head next to hers. After taking a second to compose himself, he lifted a hand, holding his balled-up fist out to her for a promissory fistbump.]

...Until the end, right, Yurippe? [He sounded slightly choked up, but all things considered, he was keeping up a pretty good front.]

I KNEW WHATCHA MEANT AHAHAHA i gotchu

tenminutes - 2014-03-06 21:13 (UTC) - Expand

AFTERLIVING ONLY: IC INBOX

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i added a ref image because idk words??

I KNEW WHATCHA MEANT AHAHAHA i gotchu