Extra 3: Irises and Light Rays
(Note: This extra continues from Extra 2. Published in Ichiho Michi’s blog as a thank you to celebrate the release of Side Profiles and Irises in February 2017. )
Seeing the raw traces left behind by someone who had used the bathroom before him shouldn’t have been something that inspired fuzzy feelings. The floor and the walls were damp. Little droplets of water clung to the ceiling in the shape of hemispheres as the heavy scent of soap and a thick, musty steam permeated the space. However, all those elements were qualified by the condition that someone whom he loved had used them—and that changed the picture entirely. It sounded a little perverted to say that it simply made him happy, but Shin proceeded to take a shower, enveloped in the moist steam that made him a little embarrassed. He changed into a set of clothes that he had bought at the neighborhood Uniqlo. Shin wondered if it would be okay to go to a sushi restaurant dressed in the casualest of the casual. A conveyor belt place wasn’t a problem though.
Shin dried his hair and exited the bathroom. For some reason, the smell of curry in the apartment wafted over to him.
“Oh, did you leave the fan on in the bathroom?”
“Yeah.”
Tatsuki was sitting on the floor in his underpants and a T-shirt. He clapped his hands together loudly in front of the coffee table and exclaimed, “I’m going to dig in~”
“Uh, whatta ya eatin’?”
“Curry.”
“Well, I can see that, but ain’t we goin’ for sushi tonight?”
“That’s why.”
“Huh?”
“You know! You have to fill your belly a little first! Especially when you think of the prices!”
So in other words, he had to reduce the edge off his hunger first, otherwise it could get expensive.
“Even back at my parents’, they would make me eat fried rice at home before going out for barbecue. Was it different for you, Nacchan?”
“Yeah, I never did that. Hey, ya hair’s still wet! Ya gotta dry it properly.”
“I hate using the blow-dryer. It’s a pain.”
“Geez—…”
Shin brought out the blow-dryer from the bathroom, and sitting on the sofa, directed the warm air at Tatsuki from the back.
“Oh~ That feels nice~”
Tatsuki paused his hand from eating and tipped his head back, leaving Shin to take care of his hair. The strands dried soft and fluffy as Shin ran his fingers though each little section. It was nothing more than an ordinary physical phenomenon, but it felt like Shin could see the results happening right before his eyes, and it made him happy. Tatsuki’s presence that was warming the palms of his hands made him happy. Shin wanted to wrap both arms around Tatsuki, smothering his whole head into his chest, but he suppressed the urge to do so and turned off the blow-dryer.
“Okay, done.”
“Keep on going~”
“No, ya can’t.”
Shin wouldn’t be able to hold back if he did.
“Tch.”
Tatsuki smoothed down his hair with his fingers in dissatisfaction, but he turned around and held out his spoon to Shin.
“Here, I’ll give you a bite.”
Shin tried to refuse, saying “No, it’s fine,” but Tatsuki insisted anyway, saying “Come on, come on, it’s going to spill.” Shin couldn’t help but open his mouth as Tatsuki urged him to eat it.
“Is it good?”
Shin pressed a hand to his mouth as he chewed and replied, “It’s normal.”
“If you say that on a tasting report, you’ll be kicked right off it.”
“I’m just an amateur.”
“Well, yeah, you are. But more importantly~”
Tatsuki rested the spoon on the plate and smiled proudly.
“You ate it~”
“Huh?”
“You ate from the same spoon that I used~ Even though you said that you hated food that people touched with their chopsticks.”
Shin finally figured out what Tatsuki was trying to say. “Are ya dumb?” he said, exasperated. “Are ya talkin’ ’bout the time we ate ramen together? How long ago was that…?”
“No way, it was pretty recent, you know.”
Now that Shin thought about it, maybe Tatsuki was right. Shin had refused at the time because he really didn’t like it. He didn’t mind sharing, but he didn’t like having his own portion eaten away or eating other people’s portions. Hotpots where everyone shared one big dish were okay, but he avoided the ones where people ate bitefuls directly from the pot. From that night up until now, Shin had always been himself, and so he thought it was strange.
“…Anyway, after everythin’ we did, why would I complain ’bout a spoon now…?”
Shin had long swallowed his food, but he replied like he was still chewing on it. Tatsuki asked, “Oh, what did you say?” He clearly knew what Shin was doing, his face looking completely amused, so Shin slipped down onto the floor from the sofa and snatched over the plate of curry.
“Hey! You thief!”
“Shut up! Why ya such a dumb lughead!”
He was going to eat all the curry himself. He didn’t even feel the spice.
“Hey! You’re eating all my curry!”
Tatsuki frantically wrested the spoon away from Shin, and the momentum he had from holding his wrist sent his weight down on top of Shin. The wooden flooring felt nice and cool to the touch. The light from the sunset shone through the blinds, casting orange stripes on the floor. Their bodies tangled together and distorted the patterns.
“…The rain shower finally stopped.”
“Yeah.”
Before they knew it, the entire room was tinged with the color of fruit juice.
“Nacchan, now you’re all wet.”
Tatsuki laughed as he touched Shin’s hair. They re-linked their hands together on the floor.
“An’ I just took a shower too.”
“You can just take another one. This time, I’ll dry your hair for you.”
From that night at the ramen place, Shin felt like he had arrived some place much farther than he had ever been before. But not that much time had passed since then. Shin remembered everything, and here he was, looking at Tatsuki—looking up into the irises of his eyes. All while dyed in the warmth of the orange that melted even the sound of their hearts. The light rays had chased away the rain clouds, lighting up the smile that Shin truly loved.
Additional extras from Takemiya-sensei, drawn to celebrate the release of the book!
Translator Note: Kei’s shirt says “Shimamura,” which is a Japanese clothing chain known for their extremely low prices.
Ahaha, I love them all. But Tatsuki and Ushio are both so dead. 😂
TvT)/ now kiss! Is what I want to say to those two rn hahahaha now I’m excited for the anime for YKNKHK ;v;)/
Thanks for the chapter!!!~ 🙇🙇🙇
Haha, there’s still more fluff and cuteness (and drama) to come~
I so want to see Kei (and Kunieda-san) animated! 😊
Omg!! Looking forward to it now <3