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The sun was rising.
Shizuka blew into her hands- it was already spring, but the nights could still be quite chilly. The bar had closed for the morning- they just had to finish cleaning up. She just had to throw out this bag of trash, then she could...
...huh?
Shizuka stopped dead in her tracks, freezing much like a deer in headlights. The small child she'd caught digging through the dumpster did the exact same. Even in the dim light of the back alley, she could see just how grungy his clothes and hair were- clear signs of someone living on the street. Her family had never been quite that poor, but...
...well, she knew the signs.
The kid recovered first, muttering something underneath his breath that sounded like shit. He leapt off his makeshift platform- every muscle in his body primed to bolt.
"Wait!"
Oh, she'd said that.
The kid blinked, slowly looking back at her. She realized with a start that his eyes were two different colors- she'd never seen anyone with eyes like that before, though it did faintly tug at something in her memory. What was it again...?
No, more importantly!
"Are you hungry?" Shizuka asked. "The kitchen's already closed for the evening, but I could make you something."
He squinted at her suspiciously.
That was fair. She'd never been suspicious of the kindness that Kanji and everyone here had extended to her, but she knew that didn't hold true for everyone. She felt fairly certain this kid's circumstances were probably harder than hers ever had been before Keisei Street, so maybe he had even more reason to be wary of kindness. What was he doing alone at this hour? Did his parents not care where he went? She'd seen kids like that before...
The kid's stomach growled.
His cheeks flushed a bright shade of pink- and in spite of herself, Shizuka laughed. She knew she shouldn't, but that timing...
"S-shut up! Don't laugh!"
"I'm sorry," Shizuka apologized, "-but I think that answers my question. You can come in, you know. Everyone inside is nice. Ah, I'm Shizuka, by the way. Narita Shizuka."
"...Sakura," the kid muttered.
"Sakura-kun?" Shizuka asked. "What a nice name."
"H-huh!? Shut up!" Sakura yelled, his face bright red. "W-why should I go with you anyways!? A-and why is some rich girl throwing away garbage!?"
Huh? Rich?
"What makes you think I'm rich?" Shizuka asked.
"Y-your dress!" Sakura pointed at her. "It's all sparkly and stuff! That means you're rich, right!? You can't fool me!"
Oh... Pulling on the material of her dress, she watched the way it glittered in the low light of the back alley. It certainly did sparkle. She never could have imagined that she'd ever get to wear something like this in a million years. But...
"It only cost a little over 3500 yen, you know," Shizuka told him, "-and the club owner was the one who bought it for me. It's one of my stage dresses. I'm not rich at all."
Sakura frowned, muttering to himself as he counted on his hands. His brow furrowed in concentration, staring at his own hands in confusion. In spite of herself, Shizuka felt another giggle escape- which caused Sakura's cheeks to heat up again.
"D-don't laugh! Anyone could make that mistake!"
If Sakura was a homeless kid like she thought, then... yeah. She could understand how he might make that mistake perfectly well.
"Sorry," she said, "-you're right. It does look fancy."
Sakura squinted at her, his lips turned downwards in a sharp frown. She carefully stepped past him to throw away the trash, before turning towards him with a smile.
"Well? How about it?"
Sakura stared at her for a moment longer, before his stomach growled again. He clutched at his hood, the crease between his brows deepening.
"O-okay," he said, "-but no funny business!"
"No funny business," Shizuka repeated, "-I promise."
No calling Tsubaki or anyone from Roppo Ichiza then... the kid would probably just run away if he caught wind of something like that. For all she knew, he had parents that would be worried if he didn't come home. As he followed her into the back door of the bar, she cast a glance down at him. It was hard to tell with the oversized hoodie, but his cheeks didn't appear particularly bony, at least.
Good. That meant he at least had one source of food.
Alright! If she played her cards right, she could become number two!
"Shizuka, did you finish... huh? Who's this?"
Ah. What timing.
Sakura jumped back at the sight of Kanji, throwing up his fists- and hastily adjusting them so that his thumb was on the outside instead. He was clearly doing his best to look as ferocious as he could... but it was a bit hard at his height. Even she was taller than him, and that didn't happen often.
(Well, she'd imagine he'd be taller than her in a few years. He was still young.)
"Back off!" Sakura yelled.
"No, no," Shizuka waved her hands, "-it's alright, Sakura-kun. Kan-chan is a friend of mine. He works here. He isn't dangerous."
Sakura squinted at him in suspicion and didn't lower his fists.
"Seriously," Kanji said, "-who's the kid?"
"This is Sakura-kun!" Shizuka said. "I found him digging through the dumpster outside. I was going to make him something to eat. Do you want to eat something too, Kan-chan?"
"...in the dumpster?" Kanji asked- and then shrugged after a moment of thought. "Sure. I'd never turn down your cooking, Shizuka."
Shizuka's felt her cheeks flush... but they didn't turn half as red as Sakura's did. The kid made a strangled sound, pulling his hood down further as if he were embarrassed.
"Hm?" Shizuka peered down at him. "Is something wrong?"
"N-nothin!" Sakura sputtered. "Are you gonna make food or what!?"
"In a second," Shizuka said, "-these aren't exactly the best clothes to cook in, so I thought I'd change first. Kan-chan, can you keep him company?"
"Sure," Kanji said, "-I'm done with cleaning anyways. Come on, kid. The kitchen's this way."
Sakura quickly glanced between the two of them, an uncertain expression on his face. Shizuka frowned, wondering what it was about Kanji that he didn't like. Was it because he was tall? At Sakura's height, it must be hard for him to see his face...
"Don't worry," Shizuka said, "-you can trust him."
Sakura gave her a look that read but why should I trust you- which... ah, she supposed that was fair. She just smiled at him, stooping down so that she could be at eye level with him. She blinked, for the first time noticing that much like his eyes, his hair was two different colors as well- black and white.
His long eyelashes were pretty, she thought.
"It's okay," Shizuka said, "-no one here will make you do anything you don't want to. Here. We can pinky promise, even."
With a smile, she held out her hand, sticking out just her pinky. Sakura's brow furrowed- before he hesitantly stuck out his own pinky. Shizuka linked her pinky with his, watching as his cheeks turned a faint shade of pink at the contact.
"Pinky swear," she chanted, "-if I lie, I'll swallow a thousand needles."
"There," she said, "-now you know I'll keep my promise. Kan-chan will do it too, right?"
She glanced over his shoulder at him. Kanji just laughed, crouching down so that he was at Sakura's level too and stuck out his own pinky.
"Of course," he said, "-what Shizuka wants, she gets."
Sakura made a choked sound.
"F-forget it!" He yelled. "Pinky swears are for babies anyways!"
He stomped past Kanji- then froze, clearly realizing that he had no idea where he was going. Shizuka did her best to stifle her laughter this time, even as Kanji just stared at her cluelessly. Ah, she got it- maybe Sakura was just shy. He just covered it up by shouting.
"I'll be just a second," Shizuka said, "-okay?"
"...f-fine," Sakura mumbled, "-I'll wait."
Shizuka smiled, petting his head. He went stiff, but the look he gave her as she pulled away nearly broke her heart. It felt like it had been a long time since anyone had touched him like that... did he really have anyone waiting for him? He couldn't be completely on his own, could he? Even the orphans in the Sunaba district at least had each other...
No. If she pushed too hard, it might have the opposite effect.
But if he didn't have anyone... could she convince him to stay? Everyone on Keisei Street was truly kind- they'd all welcomed her with open arms, even without knowing anything about her background. She was sure they'd do the same for Sakura too. She only had a free couch at her place, but if he wanted, he could stay with her! She wouldn't mind!
She had already gained an older sister. It might be fun to have a little brother too.
Kanji stared at the kid across from him.
The kid stared back.
Right. What did you even do with small children? What did they even like? Milk? Crap. It didn't feel like it had been that long since he was a child, but he'd already forgotten.
...hot chocolate? Could he make hot chocolate? Kids liked chocolate.
...how did you even make hot chocolate?
He pulled out his phone- and Sakura tensed. Kanji frowned, sliding the phone back into his pocket. Sakura's shoulders slumped. He pulled it out again, and they tensed again. Kanji set his phone on the table so the kid could see it. He watched as he searched for how to make hot chocolate, squinting at him like he thought it was some kind of front.
He'd love to call someone else from Roppo Ichiza right now, if he was honest. Akihito knew how to handle kids, right? One of them had to.
...something told him calling in reinforcements right now would be the wrong call. The kid was warier than a novice shoplifter. He wasn't even sure he'd blinked yet.
Also, making hot chocolate sounded super easy. Cocoa powder and milk? He could do that. He left his phone on the table as he got up and scoured the kitchen cabinets for cocoa powder. They had to have some, right?
...no, apparently not.
Hm. There went that idea.
Sakura was still watching him like a hawk- or maybe more like a cat, with those mismatched eyes of his. Kanji opted to ignore it, instead peering into the fridge to see if they had anything a kid could drink- which, hm. Yeah, definitely not beer. Even he wasn't old enough for that yet. Orange juice? Pulling it out, he held it up to show the kid.
"Want some?"
Sakura didn't blink, but slowly nodded his head.
Good enough! Kanji poured him a glass, and then poured himself a glass once it became clear the kid was just going to squint suspiciously at it. He took a sip from his own, and the kid cautiously followed suit. Why was he so wary? Was it the suit?
Huh. Normally it had the opposite effect.
"So," Kanji said, "-what were you doing in the dumpster?"
Sakura flinched, a guilty flush on his face.
"Why?" Sakura asked. "Gonna call the cops?"
Well now he was just insulted.
"The cops?" Kanji repeated. "No way. The cops around here are a joke. They're more likely to cause problems than solve them."
Sakura blinked, like he hadn't expected that answer. Huh. Maybe it really was the suit, Kanji thought. Was this kid a runaway? He seemed awfully young for that. Was he just homeless? Shouldn't he at least have parents around if he was? Or someone to take care of him?
No way he'd wandered away from Furin Gardens, not dressed like that.
"I'm back!" Shizuka swept into the kitchen. "Have you been good, Sakura-kun?"
Sakura's brow furrowed. "I ain't done nothin."
"Really?" Shizuka pet his head again. "That's good! Then, let's get started on cooking! Do you want to help, Sakura-kun?"
Sakura blinked, staring up at her. "I don't... I dun know how to cook."
"That's fine, that's fine," Shizuka waved a hand, "-we'll make something simple. The owner says that there's some ground pork in the fridge that's about to expire, so how about we make some hamburger steak?"
Sakura's eyes sparkled. Huh. That was almost a little cute.
"In that case," Shizuka smiled, "-wash your hands first."
Sakura nodded, hopping down off the chair. He went to roll up the sleeves of his clearly oversized hoodie further, but after a moment he just frowned and took it off, hanging it on the back of the chair. Underneath was the grungiest t-shirt Kanji had seen in his life, the hem of one of the sleeves ripped. Sakura dutifully washed his hands, a thin layer of grime peeling off of them.
Guess it wasn't the dumpster that was the source of the kid's smell.
Oh, right. He had those coupons for the public bathhouse he'd gotten from a patron. Standing up, he didn't miss the way Sakura flinched as he rose to his feet. Kanji scratched the back of his head, before deciding to leave his phone in plain sight where the kid could see it. He kind of felt like he should be calling someone...
...but he'd let Shizuka take the lead on this. She probably knew what she was doing.
"-and now you toss them between your hands like this!"
Shizuka smiled as Sakura tossed the patties between his hands like she'd shown him. He'd clearly never stepped foot in a kitchen in his life, but he still eagerly listened to all of her directions.
"That's right! You're so good at this, Sakura-kun!"
Sakura's cheeks turned bright red at the simple praise. She had him set the patties down on the cutting board and directed him to wash his hands again. He scrubbed them thoroughly- and a bit of his arms too. She washed her own hands, before she began cooking the hamburger steaks. She was grateful the owner had permitted her little venture, but she'd never really doubted it for a second.
(If he was putting out quiet inquires about Sakura in the meantime... well, he didn't have to know that. If he was still living with his family, it was best to let him go back to them, even if they were on the streets. If he wasn't...)
Ah. He was watching the hamburger steaks cook. He was even drooling a little.
"Okay! It's done!"
She set down a plate in front of Sakura's chair. He sat down in it, not wasting even a second before he tore into it, stabbing the hamburger steak with his fork and using it as a knife. He shoved a piece into his mouth, his eyes glittering as he chewed.
"It's good!"
"Right?" Shizuka asked. "That's because you helped make it yourself."
"No, no," Kanji said, "-he's right. It's delicious."
Shizuka's cheeks flushed, averting her eyes from Kanji. If she was being honest, being able to cook something for him was an unexpected benefit... but that wasn't her only reason! Honestly! She hadn't been thinking that at all!
"...why are you red?"
Shizuka opened her mouth to say something... but ah, Kanji's question had been directed at Sakura, actually- not her. The kid's cheeks were dusted a faint shade of red, as he squirmed almost uncomfortably in his chair.
"S'nothin," Sakura muttered, "-l-leave me alone."
Sakura shoved another piece of hamburger steak into his mouth, chewing it almost aggressively. Shizuka smiled, taking a bite of her own. How nice. It was a bit like a...
...ah, now she was turning even redder.
Sakura finished off his hamburger steak in record time. He shoved his chair back, standing up and grabbing his hoodie- and abruptly, she realized he was about to leave. Kanji realized it too, opening his mouth up to say something- but she just caught his eye and shook her head. She didn't know if he had family to go back to or not.
They couldn't exactly keep him here if he did.
"Wait, kid," Kanji said, "-take this."
He held out a pair of tickets to him. Sakura stared at them warily, before peering up at Kanji. Kanji huffed and pressed them into Sakura's hand.
"There's a public bathhouse at the end of the district," Kanji said, "-turn right when you leave here and you can't miss it. These'll get you in twice for free."
Sakura's cheeks flushed- and ah, she knew that expression of shame a little too well. She'd been lucky enough to have access to a (admittedly terrible) bath, but there had been plenty of other kids in the Sunaba district who she knew showered in secret at school.
"You helped cook this," Kanji said, "-so consider it payment."
A little bit of the shame abated. Sakura slowly nodded, pocketing the tickets.
"If you're ever feeling hungry," Shizuka smiled, "-come by here again, okay? There'll always at least be snacks here for you."
Sakura bristled. "I ain't comin back!"
He darted out the door before either of them could say anything back to that. Shizuka exchanged a glance with Kanji, who just chuckled.
"...so he's coming back, huh?"
"Yep," Shizuka nodded, "-he'll be back."
The kid came back.
Kanji found him out in the back alley, curled up by the dumpster. It was barely past eleven- a normal kid would definitely be home by now. He startled when he opened the back door, his head snapping up, eyes wide and frantic-
-until he saw who it was, and he relaxed.
His eyes were red like he'd been crying. His hood was torn. His knuckles were badly scraped up- but the thing that caught his attention the most was the bruise on his cheek.
"Oi," Kanji said, "-you okay, kid?"
Sakura glared at him with a surprising amount of ferocity, only slightly offset by the faint red tint to his cheeks. Ah. He'd probably caught him crying. Probably out of frustration, if he was reading things right.
(Which he... admittedly did not always do.)
"M'fine," Sakura muttered, "-what do you care?"
No, of course he cared if he saw a kid that looked like they'd been punched. That was normal. Still, something told him that wasn't Sakura's normal.
Kanji just sighed, gesturing towards the back door. "You wanna come in?"
Sakura turned his head away from him with a huff.
"It's gonna rain, you know," Kanji said, "-the forecast said so."
Sakura's fingers dug into the fabric of his hoodie, before he abruptly stood up and stomped towards the door. Kanji just scratched the back of his head, following the kid inside. He kind of wished Tsubaki were here- he seemed like he'd be good with kids. Shizuka was...
Oh, there was an idea.
"Hey," Kanji said, "-do you want to hear Shizuka sing?"
Sakura blinked, looking up at him with a faint tilt of his head.
Kanji gestured for him to follow him. They went through the backstage area, where the customers wouldn't be able to see them peek out from behind the stage. He put a finger to his mouth to shush the kid, before pointing towards the stage.
Good timing. Shizuka was about to sing.
Sakura peered around the corner at her. At first glance, the kid didn't look that impressed- but the way his gaze was solely fixed on Shizuka suggested otherwise.
Heh. Maybe even feral kittens could be a little cute.
"She's great, right?" Kanji asked. "She's the number one performer here."
Sakura nodded, looking as if he'd forgotten his earlier frustrations. Good. That was the idea. Now how could he pump the kid for information about the people who had beaten him up? He didn't know if it had happened on Roppo Ichiza turf or not, but even if it hadn't, well... he had friends in Bofurin too.
Tsubaki would gladly help.
"Oh? Sakura-kun!"
Kanji smiled at Shizuka as she came backstage- while Sakura just turned a deep shade of red that briefly disguised the bruise on his cheek. Not for long though- even in the dimly lit backstage area, Shizuka spotted it right away.
"Oh no!" She crouched in front of him, gently cupping his face. "What happened? Does it hurt? Kan-chan, the first aid box-!"
"It's nothin!" Sakura yelled. "I dun need your stupid concern!"
"No," Shizuka said firmly, "-we're properly treating this. Oh, and your knuckles too... did you get into a fight?"
Sakura's cheeks flushed, jerking his gaze away from Shizuka. She lifted her head to meet his eyes with a frown, but Kanji just shook his head. He figured it was fight of some sort, but he didn't know anything else.
At least from the look of the kid's knuckles, it hadn't just been a one-sided beating. Figured. The kid seemed to have too much spunk for that.
"...they were at my place again," Sakura muttered after a few moments of silence, "-so I tried to chase em off."
"...they?" Shizuka asked. "Who?"
"...dunno," Sakura said, "-some punks. There were only two of them this time, so I thought I could... but I lost. I don't got a pla-"
He snapped his mouth shut, as if he'd realized he was about to say too much. He clutched tightly at the fabric of his hoodie, his hands trembling in frustration. Kanji sighed, yanking the kid's hood down so he could ruffle his hair directly. He didn't really get it, but he had a feeling that the kid's opponents had probably been way older than him. As far as he saw it, there was no shame in losing- but doubly so if you were trying to fight someone older and likely stronger than you.
Maybe they'd set up shop we're he'd been living.
Yeah. He'd be frustrated too.
"H-hey!" Sakura covered his head with his hands. "Don't-!"
"Oh, you washed it." Kanji leaned in, peering a bit closer at him. It was hard to tell because his clothes were just as grungy as ever, but he was cleaner than before. "You used the coupons I gave you, huh? That's good."
Sakura's cheeks flushed. "S-shut up! It was just on the way!"
"Hey," Kanji said, "-you think the owner would mind if he slept on the break room couch tonight? It's going to rain and all..."
"That sounds good!" Shizuka smiled. "I'm sure he would."
"I-I don't need-!"
"Oi," Kanji said, "-just shut up and accept the charity, kid."
Sakura narrowed his eyes- and then without any warning, stomped on his foot with a surprising amount of force. Kanji yelped- he kind of figured he'd do something like that, but man... the kid actually packed a bit of a punch for being so small.
"It's not kid," he said, "-it's Sakura!"
Ah well. This was better than before.
"Alright, Sakura," Kanji said, "-just let us take care of you tonight, okay?"
"Please?" Shizuka asked.
Sakura glanced between the two of them- before biting his lip and ducking his head. It took a bit, but eventually he slowly nodded. Faintly chuckling, Kanji ruffled his hair again.
"Come on then," he said, "-let's have Shizuka tend to you."
Sakura didn't say anything, but he didn't protest when Shizuka lead him into the break room either. He lingered long enough to watch her crack open the first aid kit, before he went to find the owner and give him the rundown. As expected, he was okay with letting the kid camp out on their break room couch for a night.
When he came back, Sakura had a large bandage on his cheek.
"Oh," Kanji said, "-that's a good look."
Sakura threw a pillow at him.
Kanji just laughed, easily catching the projectile. He set it back down on the couch, watching with great fondness as Shizuka set to treating Sakura's knuckles. Guess he didn't really need reinforcements- Shizuka was already pretty good with kids herself.
"There," Shizuka said, "-all done."
"Shizuka and I have to get back to work," Kanji said, "-but you can stay here, Sakura. I'll send someone back with some food in a bit, okay?"
Sakura looked skeptical. Even without fully understanding the kid's circumstances, he kind of got it. His trust in people had been damaged at some point- but at the same time, it was clear that the kid still wanted to- otherwise he probably would have just run away the first time Shizuka had talked to him.
Sakura was still there when he checked on him later, so he'd take that as proof.
(He was also stuffing his face full of fruit. He looked a little like a squirrel.)
He was also gone before the sun rose.
Yeah. He doubted it would be that easy- but maybe at least the kid knew that this was a safe place for him to come if he got hurt. That alone would be worth its weight in gold. In the meantime... he had some asking around to do. Maybe the punks who had hurt the kid were the type to mouth off about it.
He sure hoped so.