Unmask me (Chapter 2)
"What?! ... So what did you do about those books?" Jun asked Sho the next day at work
"I returned to the bookshop and told the cashier staff that there had been a terrible mixup of books. I left the purchases with them with a short note and my phone number in there. They would tell him to contact me once he had picked them up."
"I wonder. Would he actually contact you?"
Sho shrugged in response.
"Well he clearly is a gamer," he said, "and that game guide he bought must have been pretty expensive. So I'm guessing yes?"
Just then, his phone beeped.
He had a text message.
"Hey. I have received your note. Thank you for returning those books to me. Sorry but your books are left at my house right now so could I meet up with you to return them in person asap?"
Sho smiled. It was good to know his kind gesture was appreciated. (Also, he was already beginning to miss that time-management book already.)
"Absolutely. Meet at the cafe opposite that same bookshop. How does tomorrow afternoon at 1pm sound?"
He got a quick beep soon after he sent his text.
"Ok. See you tomorrow."
Sho looked up at Jun, who was chewing elegantly on his food.
"Welp, I guess I will be meeting him in person tomorrow during our lunch hours."
“Remember to pick up your mask tomorrow, yeah?”
!!!!!!!!!
The next morning, Jun walked into the office to see that his workaholic friend was already hard at work. He sat at his desk opposite him to see that Sho's brows were knit into a near-permanent frown.
"Everything okay?"
Sho only grunted in response.
Jun smirked and shook his head as he walked to the pantry to get them some coffee.
It wasn't until lunchtime that he learnt the reason why Sho had been in such a foul mood.
"Could you believe his nerve?!" Sho ranted in between mouthfuls of rice, "this dude was actually a good twenty minutes late and he had the cheek to not text me beforehand. What sort of manners is that?!"
Jun could understand his friend's foul mood now- the fastest, surest way to make Sakurai Sho mad is to turn up late. He has always been a punctual person and holds the same expectation for everyone else he meets.
"Well alright, so he came in late to your meetup spot. Did he return you the books?"
"Oh right. The books. THE EFFING BOOKS," Sho grumbled, and Jun flinched at his passionate rant, "DID YOU SEE WHAT HE DID TO MY BOOKS?!"
"...er, can't imagine what he COULD do to books that he did not own per se," Jun said, "maybe just read them?"
"Oh I'm all for reading the books, since they are essentially educational. But the idiot dog-eared my book and I could have SWORN I saw some chip crumbs stuck between some pages!."
Jun sighed and gave his friend a comforting pat on the back.
"Well, at least you managed to get the books that you bought. Technically speaking, dog-earring books never altered the content of the text anyway. Isn't that more important?"
"It doesn't, but I like my pages straight and clean!" Sho protested as he picked at his food, "at least I'll never meet that dolt again. I was SO close to telling him off but we were in a public place."
"There there. It's over and done with. He got his books, you got yours. We are done."
Sho sighed as he wolfed down his lunch, as if trying his best to get the unpleasant encounter from the previous day out of his head. He was all too glad to put that unpleasant encounter behind him.
Sho strolled on the streets, looking out at the stores beside him. Just then, he spotted a familiar mask.
His ex-girlfriend's.
She was skipping out of a jewellery shop with a guy.
"I'm sorry, Sho-kun."
"I'm sorry, Sho-"
"I'm sorry."
"I'm sorry."
"I'm sor-"
Sho shook his ex's words out of his head and headed over to the nearest izakaya.
He needed a drink. Bad.
!!!!!!!!!
Hours later, Sho walked unsteadily out of the izakaya. He looked at the dark streets ahead.
He was not about to take chances on his own. He decided to call Jun.
He scrolled to his recent contacts and tapped the number he knew well.
The phone rang and rang, and Sho frowned at the lengthy delay. Jun was usually still up at this time. He shrugged and redialled the number.
"Hello?" An annoyed voice spoke through the phone.
"Hello? Jun-kun? Sorry, but can you pick me up to my house? I'm feeling a little unstable from drinking."
"Oi, what are you talking about? I'm-"
"I know you are sleeping. But I will make it up to you tomorrow, okay? I'm outside Miyabi Izakaya."
He then hung up the phone and sat himself on the bench nearby, waiting for his friend. Just then he heard the sound of a car pulling over. He felt a pair of strong arms help him into the car. He smiled.
"Jun-kun~ I knew you would come. You know, you won't believe who I saw just now." Sho slurred as he leaned his head against his friend's shoulder.
"Who?"
"I saw my ex. She looked so happy skipping out of the jewellery shop," Sho said deprecatingly,"wonder if she is getting married. Well, technically she cheated on me with him so..heh.."
"...well, erm... do you still like her?"
"No. I really don't think I do," Sho answered sleepily,"it's just.. I wonder why life has to be this... unfair."
The last thing he felt before he fell asleep was the soft sensation of someone patting his head while he drifted off.
Chapter 3 here
"I returned to the bookshop and told the cashier staff that there had been a terrible mixup of books. I left the purchases with them with a short note and my phone number in there. They would tell him to contact me once he had picked them up."
"I wonder. Would he actually contact you?"
Sho shrugged in response.
"Well he clearly is a gamer," he said, "and that game guide he bought must have been pretty expensive. So I'm guessing yes?"
Just then, his phone beeped.
He had a text message.
"Hey. I have received your note. Thank you for returning those books to me. Sorry but your books are left at my house right now so could I meet up with you to return them in person asap?"
Sho smiled. It was good to know his kind gesture was appreciated. (Also, he was already beginning to miss that time-management book already.)
"Absolutely. Meet at the cafe opposite that same bookshop. How does tomorrow afternoon at 1pm sound?"
He got a quick beep soon after he sent his text.
"Ok. See you tomorrow."
Sho looked up at Jun, who was chewing elegantly on his food.
"Welp, I guess I will be meeting him in person tomorrow during our lunch hours."
“Remember to pick up your mask tomorrow, yeah?”
!!!!!!!!!
The next morning, Jun walked into the office to see that his workaholic friend was already hard at work. He sat at his desk opposite him to see that Sho's brows were knit into a near-permanent frown.
"Everything okay?"
Sho only grunted in response.
Jun smirked and shook his head as he walked to the pantry to get them some coffee.
It wasn't until lunchtime that he learnt the reason why Sho had been in such a foul mood.
"Could you believe his nerve?!" Sho ranted in between mouthfuls of rice, "this dude was actually a good twenty minutes late and he had the cheek to not text me beforehand. What sort of manners is that?!"
Jun could understand his friend's foul mood now- the fastest, surest way to make Sakurai Sho mad is to turn up late. He has always been a punctual person and holds the same expectation for everyone else he meets.
"Well alright, so he came in late to your meetup spot. Did he return you the books?"
"Oh right. The books. THE EFFING BOOKS," Sho grumbled, and Jun flinched at his passionate rant, "DID YOU SEE WHAT HE DID TO MY BOOKS?!"
"...er, can't imagine what he COULD do to books that he did not own per se," Jun said, "maybe just read them?"
"Oh I'm all for reading the books, since they are essentially educational. But the idiot dog-eared my book and I could have SWORN I saw some chip crumbs stuck between some pages!."
Jun sighed and gave his friend a comforting pat on the back.
"Well, at least you managed to get the books that you bought. Technically speaking, dog-earring books never altered the content of the text anyway. Isn't that more important?"
"It doesn't, but I like my pages straight and clean!" Sho protested as he picked at his food, "at least I'll never meet that dolt again. I was SO close to telling him off but we were in a public place."
"There there. It's over and done with. He got his books, you got yours. We are done."
Sho sighed as he wolfed down his lunch, as if trying his best to get the unpleasant encounter from the previous day out of his head. He was all too glad to put that unpleasant encounter behind him.
Sho strolled on the streets, looking out at the stores beside him. Just then, he spotted a familiar mask.
His ex-girlfriend's.
She was skipping out of a jewellery shop with a guy.
"I'm sorry, Sho-kun."
"I'm sorry, Sho-"
"I'm sorry."
"I'm sorry."
"I'm sor-"
Sho shook his ex's words out of his head and headed over to the nearest izakaya.
He needed a drink. Bad.
!!!!!!!!!
Hours later, Sho walked unsteadily out of the izakaya. He looked at the dark streets ahead.
He was not about to take chances on his own. He decided to call Jun.
He scrolled to his recent contacts and tapped the number he knew well.
The phone rang and rang, and Sho frowned at the lengthy delay. Jun was usually still up at this time. He shrugged and redialled the number.
"Hello?" An annoyed voice spoke through the phone.
"Hello? Jun-kun? Sorry, but can you pick me up to my house? I'm feeling a little unstable from drinking."
"Oi, what are you talking about? I'm-"
"I know you are sleeping. But I will make it up to you tomorrow, okay? I'm outside Miyabi Izakaya."
He then hung up the phone and sat himself on the bench nearby, waiting for his friend. Just then he heard the sound of a car pulling over. He felt a pair of strong arms help him into the car. He smiled.
"Jun-kun~ I knew you would come. You know, you won't believe who I saw just now." Sho slurred as he leaned his head against his friend's shoulder.
"Who?"
"I saw my ex. She looked so happy skipping out of the jewellery shop," Sho said deprecatingly,"wonder if she is getting married. Well, technically she cheated on me with him so..heh.."
"...well, erm... do you still like her?"
"No. I really don't think I do," Sho answered sleepily,"it's just.. I wonder why life has to be this... unfair."
The last thing he felt before he fell asleep was the soft sensation of someone patting his head while he drifted off.
Chapter 3 here