Chapter 1
He woke up to the muffled patter of rain hitting his bedroom window on a Sunday morning. Unlike most people his age, Hyuuga Neji naturally woke up early, no matter if he had classes at the university or other business to attend to. Even on the days when he was free to do as he pleased, his lilac orbs always caught sight of the daybreak or his ears always heard the first chirps of birds singing in the trees.
Neji rolled from his stomach onto his back, silently stretching the remnants of sleep from his limbs. After blinking up at the ceiling at a snail’s pace for a few minutes he finally felt awake enough to grab his phone from his bedside table and get up to start some form of a morning routine. Weekends blessed the young man with some room to relax and forget about the stresses and turmoils of the average weekday, though he found that some stresses still remained at arm's length.
Take his family, for example.
It had been years since Neji lost his mother and father. His mother had died first due to complications from illness. Later, when he was just a boy, his father, unfortunately, found himself in the middle of a multi-car collision on the freeway while on his way to work. He would later die in the hospital.
Neji had long since recovered from, or realistically pushed away, the emotions of losing his parents while he lived with his cousin, Hyuuga Hinata, and her family.
Though there was a time when the two did not get along, Neji grew to see that his cousin faced tremendous, and somewhat ridiculous, expectations from uncle Hiashi, her father. When he was taken in after his father’s death, those ridiculous expectations were placed on him too.
Uncle Hiashi ran a very successful and renowned law firm in the heart of Tokyo. This business, which started with uncle Hiashi and Neji’s father, flourished as the result of years of hard work, sacrifice, and discipline. That hard work, sacrifice, and discipline were also expected of both Neji and Hinata.
The man thought about his upcoming law classes with mild disdain as he zombie-walked to the bathroom, making sure to stay as silent as possible as the majority of the household was still sleeping. It wasn’t as if law and criminal justice didn’t interest him. In fact, he actually quite enjoyed all the subjects he was taking at the university. Learning about law and the system, learning about criminal theories and research, and just studying under seasoned lawyers and professors was something he took pride in.
What bothered him was the fact that he felt like he couldn’t choose.
He didn’t choose his degree. His uncle did.
Hinata didn’t choose her degree. Her father did.
His cousin wanted to major in music. Simply put, Hinata couldn’t particularly debate her choice in her major with her father, and neither could Neji.
Growing up in this environment made him believe he had no right to his future and that it was already laid out by someone else entirely. It was a topic that truly angered him, but there were times that he felt he couldn’t really fight what his family expected of him.
Neji shut the door as he entered the bathroom and stood before the sink, staring at his reflection with mixed emotions. The semester had been particularly rough, for everyone it seems, and these pesky thoughts didn’t help his crumbling mood. Going to university with Hinata provided some comfort knowing he wasn’t entirely alone in his studies, but he could see that the stress was getting to not only his cousin, but to himself too.
The man gently pressed against the skin under his eyes, frowning at the dark bags caused by a severe lack of sleep. He grumbled to himself, physically shaking all the negative thoughts out of his head as he combed the knots from sleep out of his dark brown hair.
At least, he tried to shake those thoughts away.
Instead, they continued to linger when he washed his face, brushed his teeth, and slipped on a clean pair of black slacks when he returned to his room. He let out a soft sigh, pulling a white long sleeve button-up over his skin and tucking it into his bottoms. Over the shirt he grabbed his long gray coat and beanie, both heavy and warm to protect him from the elements.
Grabbing the essentials, wallet, cell, keys, umbrella, and slipping on his black shoes, Neji slipped out the front door.
His destination? Well, he wasn’t really sure where he wanted to go yet.
Feeling the cool air nip at the skin on his cheeks as he walked out, he immediately opened his umbrella. It was still raining, though the pouring he had heard earlier had been reduced to a drizzle, as he stepped on the sidewalk in front of his home and began to walk.
It was kind of calming to Neji, simply walking with no aim and no goal. He let himself breathe in nice cool air and let the sound of soft rainfall on his umbrella soothe his racing brain.
It wasn’t very long after his walk when Neji realized he was walking on the way to the university through the city. He almost laughed.
He wasn’t surprised that he had nearly walked the entire way to his school like it was programmed in his skull. Neji shook his head as he turned a heel, walking back to an intersection he had just passed so he could turn onto another street.
This was an area he very rarely ventured to. In this area, the shopping district, the man was never really fond of shopping and crowds. Luckily, since it was still very early, not many people were around. Those already there before him were mostly the elderly or mothers with their children.
Walking through the shopping district was nice for him because it meant that he could put away his umbrella since the shops generally were protected by rows of awnings.
By the time his stomach alerted him of hunger, he found himself stopped before a cozy-looking café that was, very conveniently in his opinion, right next to a book shop. As one who could find comfort in a book, he knew that these two businesses must have very beneficial profit from each other as they satisfy the needs of both bookworms and coffee addicts.
In his case, he was both.
Deciding to browse the bookstore later, the man entered the cafe, inhaling deep the wafting scent of coffee beans with a satisfied hum. A barista at the counter was preparing another customer's drink as he greeted Neji with a smile. He managed a half-hearted smile back, walking to the counter as the sound of the music in the cafe took his mind to another world.
He glanced at the Echo sitting by the register. On the device’s screen, it read “Violin Concerto: Affairs of the Heart” by Marjan Mozetich, for the song currently playing.
Neji had never heard a piece like this before, and it shocked him to feel how much he was immediately enraptured by it. What was unreal to him was that for some reason, the song nearly made him want to cry.
But why?
“Hello, sir and welcome. How can I help you?” The cashier at the front was speaking to him, her customer-service smile bright and kind. The man before her was staring off into space, but answered.
“A coffee, please.” He said without really thinking about what was in front of him. The music was just so distracting in the best of ways.
“Of course. Would you like milk or sugar in it?” She clarified.
“No milk, please.”
“Sugar?”
Neji fell silent as the music in the café crescendoed to a painful-sounding tone. Why it brought up his thoughts from earlier in the morning, he couldn’t think of a clear reason.
After paying for his coffee and a breakfast sandwich, the man silently debated where he should sit. The music wasn’t as distracting now that the desire to sit and eat was strong. There were some rows of small tables near the window, likely for couples, some four-seater tables in the middle of the room, and some soft chairs near a fireplace and coffee table in the corner of the cafe.
The last of all the seating options seemed most appealing to him, but before he could take another step he felt his legs falter.
Someone was already there.
It was another customer who looked around his age. With her eyes trained on a book resting cover down on the arm of the chair, he could see the excitement etched on her face as she scanned each word she read.
On the coffee table before her, she had her own cup of coffee and a pastry half-eaten.
While there were more soft chairs than just the one, Neji felt a tad bit conflicted about wanting to sit there. Firstly, they were the only two customers in the store that morning. He didn’t want to invade her space or alarm her in any way by sitting right next to her when there were plenty of open spaces. Secondly, as the song faded into another, the constant reminder of his home predicament made him want comfort. Even something as little as sitting next to the warmth of a fire he hoped would make him feel better.
Keyword: He hoped.
As if the woman could feel his pale eyes on her, she glanced up from her book, making him tense. He didn’t mean to stare, he really was just thinking to himself.
Please don’t think I’m a creep.
Please don’t think I’m a creep.
Please don’t think I’m a—
“Are you wanting to sit next to the fireplace too?”
He sucked in air, realizing that during his silent panic he had been holding his breath. Neji released a sound that was in between a sigh and a laugh as he nodded to the other chair.
“Ah, uh yes. I do. I’m sorry, I just didn’t want you to be uncomfortable if I decided to sit there with all these other seats open.” He admitted, almost shyly. His eyes looked every other way but the woman’s (e/c) eyes.
When she let out a soft giggle he couldn’t help but grip the paper bag with his food just a bit tighter.
Nerves? Perhaps.
Would he admit it? That’s a very amusing thought.
“This area is for anyone, and I really don’t mind the company. Please.” She motioned to the chair across from her and the coffee table. Her eyes and smile were inviting and gave Neji a feeling of comfort and warmth he thought the fire would do. Without a word, but a soft smile, he sat down. The woman stayed smiling, keeping the page of her book with a bookmark before she closed it.
“I think staring as you did would’ve made someone more uncomfortable than just sitting next to them.” She commented in a teasing tone as the man sitting across from her sipped his coffee. He choked, one, because of what she said, and two, because the coffee had sugar in it and it surprised him.
The woman covered her mouth, her bright eyes wide and concerned. Neji started to cough into his fist.
“I am so sorry. I was only joking!” She explained frantically, beginning to ramble about how he didn’t make her uncomfortable and how he seemed like a nice guy and she knew he wasn’t staring on purpose and—
“No, no,” he managed after clearing his throat, placing his coffee on the table with another hand pressed against his chest “it’s quite alright.”
The woman stopped, removing her hand from her mouth to rest on her lap.
Neji nodded toward the drink.
“Your comment surprised me but the drink was what caught me off guard. It has sugar in it and I don’t remember asking for it.” He explained, feeling a little stupid. He could feel that his cheeks were a bit warm. Since his complexion was so fair he was sure she could see his blush.
The woman nodded toward the counter where the barista and cashier were.
“You can ask them to make you another one then. They usually don’t make mistakes but they always are accommodating.” She said.
Neji shook his head.
“Well I don’t want to bother them, so it’s really no trouble. I may not really care for sweets but it’s not that bad.”
When she laughed in response, the man felt his heart skip.
“As someone who likes sweets herself, I find your opinion on sweets bonkers.” She explained, leaning forward. The smile she adorned looked as if it was painted on her features. It looked effortless and full of joy. Her smile was the kind of smile that was simply contagious. He smiled back at her, glancing down at his drink.
“Maybe I can convince you that sweets aren’t too shabby.” She mused, reaching for her own cup of coffee. It was a warm caramel color and likely very sweet. Raising her cup, she nodded toward the man.
“My name is (L/N), (Y/N). What’s your name?” (Y/N) found a moment to introduce herself and offered her drink up for cheers.
Neji reached for his own cup, a cup of black coffee with sugar, and he grinned, lifting his own cup to tap (Y/N’s) drink.
“Hyuuga, Neji. It’s nice to meet you (Y/N).”